I Got Rhythm for Flute: Flute Book & CD

Smooth, swinging, and accessible. These ten standards carry the sophistication of Gershwin, Porter, and Ellington, but the writing sits naturally under the flute without requiring extended technique or extreme ranges. The trio grooves with genuine jazz feel, making each practice session feel like playing with a real band.

Intermediate flutists (grades 4-6) ready to engage with jazz idiom and improvisation. This works equally well for ensemble members learning jazz standards alongside classical technique or for independent study with strong playalong support.

• Listen to the trio tracks multiple times before rehearsing with them. Hear how the piano voices the chords and where the bass walks so you know what's happening beneath the melody.
• Treat the suggested solo phrases as models, not walls. Once students internalize one, ask them to swap a measure or two with their own ideas.
• Balance vibrato carefully in these arrangements. Jazz flute uses vibrato differently than classical music, and the trio will help guide the right amount if students listen actively.
• Let the rhythm section breathe. These trios are recorded live, so there's natural swing and pocket. Students should sit back slightly rather than rushing ahead.

Slot this into a spring or end-of-year concert as a refreshing contrast to classical repertoire, or use it as a semester-long improvisation unit where students master one tune at a time. Works equally well as a standalone enrichment book for flutists who want to expand beyond their primary method.

• Reading chord symbols and understanding basic jazz harmony
• Swing rhythm and jazz articulation (legato phrasing over a swinging pulse)
• Improvisation from suggested phrases to original melodic ideas
• Listening and responding to a live rhythm section accompaniment
• Understanding jazz standards and their historical context
• Balancing vibrato and tone color in a jazz idiom