ok so i have a wooden fife i was given for christmas a while back, thinking i wanted to play the flute. but then i fell in love with the trombone (still trying to understand HOW). so anyways i didnt really keep up on playing the fife but i wanna get back into it. except i can only play in a very small range. the book i have just says to force more air across the hole... somehow that doesnt work.... any advice from flute players or fife players? or good analogies. i like those.

I have a fife, too, a civil war replica that still works... What I find helps is if you try rolling the fife, finding the best angle for you to blow across the mouthhole, almost like trying to find the best way to play on a regular flute.

If you've tried that, then try varying your airstream. Sometimes forcing air does more harm than good in trying to get a sound; experiement with what seems to make the sound you're looking for the best.

These are some pretty basic tips and they helped me as I started on the fife. If this doesn't work, I'll be happy to dig up some more information for you! Good luck! (fife is such a unique instrument, isn't it?!)