Hi everyone I am new at this (look at name) and I have been playing my flute for 3 years. Recently my band directer asked me if I would like to play the piccolo for the school band. I am only playing a couple of songs in piccolo and still some in flute. I have had the problem of not really having a lot of confidence when I play with a group. I can play beautifuly by myself (or so I have been told), but think that my sound "sticks out" to much when I play with everyone. Is this something I need to just get used to or am I doing something wrong? I know that playing piccolo makes me an octive higher then the rest of the flutes, but I always feel like I am playing everything wrong and everyone can hear it. I have the tendense to play an octive lower then I should, but I think that is just nerves. Well please tell me if there is anything I can or should do it help me. Well thanks.

Piccolo does take some getting used to, so no, you are not weird.

In order to play nicely, you have to have confidence when playing it.
When you try and shy out it ends up sounding flat and the sound will not have body to it.

I know it is scary because it is heard over the band because of it's high frequency, that is normal. One thing that you always got to watch out for is tunning. You must LISTEN at all times.
There are also alternative fingers for the piccolo to help with intonation problems on certain notes.

Do not blow into it like a flute. It is a whole different instrument all together. You need to have a smaller embouchure, faster air stream and be careful not to cover up too much of the embouchure hole.

Hope that helps. Happy piccolo playing!

My band director told me when you play piccolo you CAN"T be a wimp. You have to play with confidence.^^
THere's no such thing as a wimpy piccolo player.
Sure piccolo can be really loud, and blending with the band can be hard sometimes. You just have to learn to control your sound.. Are you sure you are playing way too loud? did your band director say anything?
just don't be shy..

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WOW..sry i said the same things as the other posts. Maybe we posted at the same time^^

Nice kara, that's EXACTLY what my band director says ALL the time. I guess it's hard for me to put it into words^^

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*sigh* i wish i had a piccolo...or have a chance to play it in band. I heard if you play picc. it'll help you with flute. I'm thinking of getting one of those plastic gemienhardt picc. :) heard they don't cost that much...

ALot of people get worried that when playing piccolo that they can be heard. Well basically the only thing to do is to get over it. Piccolo fits into a little groups of instruments such as eb clarinet and soprano sax which all play in the screechismo register and therefore will more often than not be heard. It kinda comes down to confidence.

I think picc playing can only help your flute playing, it is a rewarding challenge

Thank you everyone I will try to work on everythings you all said. Some of the things you all said so did my band directer (what do ya know a teacher that knows what he is doing just jokeing).

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If anyone else has anything I should try let me know. Thanks again for the help.

The piccolo opens a new window of opportunities. New solos! Yay, doesn't everybody like new solos?
Piccolos do tend to be off pitch and require a more focused embouchure than the flute, so focus constantly.

I have all my advanced students work on piccolo both to get them used to the sound and feel and also to help them with their upper register. You may find that after you play piccolo more, your high flute register will be freer and more controlled! Keep it up!

If you're weird so am I. I often worry about it also. I think being able to play with other piccolos helps out a lot, but when your facing playing alone.. It's a scary thing, espcially if you don't have a lot of confidence in yourself.

Don't worry about feeling weird! I know that, when I started, I practiced for hours in the back rooms or at home, afraid that I would embarrass myself in front of the band! Just don't worry about it!
Be sure to always tune with the band, though, and don't let the director forget that you are there! If you are in tune, but sound different in comparision to the band, perhaps (now, this might not be the best advice, so someone call me on this if it isn't right) but change yourself to blend with the band. If they are sharp and you are in tune, it's going to sound out of balance and, to counter that, make yourself sharp. Or flat, however the band sounds. This might not be the best advice, but it never steered me wrong in band or at honor bands, especially if there is no time to tune the piccolo properly, like at honor bands.
Another thing that helped me is marching band. I personally love the marching band and the idea of marching with instruments; in a marching band, you can usually play as loud as you want depending on how many students are marching, where you are postioned, what rank you have (although that rarely matters) and what style the music is. If you have the chance to really play out and not worry that someone might hear if you make a mistake because the rest of the band is covering you, you are able to improve because you are sure of yourself...
One last thing, what type of headjoint you are playing on makes a difference. I can't really make everything black and white, but playing on a wooden headjoint usually is harder for people, especially beginners. Some people just pick up the wooden piccolo naturally, though, so it doesn't apply to every case.
I hope this has helped!

thank you everyone you have all been a help and i will keep everything in mind alright thanks again