Dizi tricks

[dokamei]

Hi everyone. How can I slide from notes 3 to 5? I always either miss the slide effect or I miss the note altogether. Also, how do I accomplish flying finger trills? Lastly, how do I use my diaphragm to have a steady vibrato? I've heard people advise others to make a "ha" sound like you are being punched in the stomach, but that doesn't work for me. 

[davidmdahl]

For vibrato, I use my throat (glottis) supported by abdominal muscles. You will hear about use of the diaphragm, but it is more correct to refer to the muscles near the diaphragm. You use your diaphragm to breath in, and other abdominals to exhale. I would turn the feeling around to "ah", to get your glottis into the action. It is important to have control over the speed, so it is not an uncontrolled "nanny-goat" sound. Start by making slow pulses of about one per second, and then speed up gradually from there.

For trills, or anything else that you want to play fast, start very slowly and build up speed gradually over days, weeks, and months. Anything that you are playing too fast to play cleanly and evenly is too fast. It is all too easy to practice mistakes rather than perfection.

Best wishes,

David