Apologies if I've posted this in the wrong section (first post and a little unsure as to where this should go)...

I am a violin and piano instructor, and am putting in a self-taught treble recorder player for the Grade 1 examination this coming December. I desperately need some help in giving correct advice to this candidate!

Please can you tell me:-

1) How can you achieve louder dynamics on the treble recorder when playing lower notes, without just blowing through to the next octave or getting squeaky sounds?! I have heard there are 'alternative' fingerings, but could someone please help me and tell me what these are and/or at least verify that this is correct?

2) I have also heard that expected dynamic range on a treble recorder in an examination setting will not be very high, due to the restricted dynamic range of the instrument... does anyone know whether this is this correct? Having entered violin and piano candidates before (and not finding that varying dynamics is a problem), I have discovered that the possible dynamic range on treble recorder seems to be much less and I hope that my candidate won't be penalised for this?

3) Can someone explain to me please (again, specifically with reference to Grade 1 treble recorder), are pupils expected to play their entire scale, i.e. ascending and descending, all in one breath? This isn't a problem for my candidate but I just want to ensure I'm asking them to do the correct thing.

4) Finally, if anyone can suggest any good websites or tutor books with useful information on the treble recorder and its technique, I'd be extremely grateful (although this is much less pressing than the first three issues listed above).

Many thanks in advance for your help! (And any other tips, aside from what is mentioned above, would be greatly appreciated too!)

Welcome to the forums, Miranda.

I can't help you with this, unfortunately. However, I can advise you that you'll find that cross-posting is against the rules and you might well get your knuckles rapped for posting this in no less than three different forums....

I'm really sorry - didn't realise this was against the rules and won't do it again!