Learn ocarina – Holding the ocarina

It seems to be a very simple thing, but actually holding the ocarina in the correct way is the most important thing you should learn in order to be able to play it well.
The ocarina is a wind instrument, which means that you don't have to press it to get a sound. Actually pressing too much will cause you problems because soon you'll feel pain at your fingers and wrists, and you'll not be able to continue practice your songs.
Unlike the guitar, on the ocarina you don't have to bend your fingers, but lay flat on the holes to be able to seal them, as it's showed on the right side image.

holding the ocarina
Keeping your fingers flat will help you grabbing the ocarina more firmly with a less effort. You'll also have less chances of leaks on the fingerholes (leaving the hole opened a bit as you can see in the first photo if you look at the left hand middle finger).
Now that you have closed all the holes try looking inside the mouthpiece of your ocarina to find the right inclination.

If you don't know what the mouthpiece is, go back at the Learn ocarina – Mouthpieces tutorial  to refresh your memory then come back here.
ocarina mouthpiece hole
By looking inside of the mouthpiece you should be able to see a light. Notice that it's divided in two, half is dark and half is not. When you'll see it, stay in that position and move the ocarina to your mouth because that is the right inclination to hold your ocarina and blow more efficiently.

Be careful to close the holes well. To do so you can try closing some holes, then turn your wrists and check if they are sealed. Blow in the ocarina then try to open your fingers, close it again and check if you'll have the same sound as before.
If it changes, you have to understand which of the two sounds is correct.


Often the pinky holes are left open, so pay close attenction to them.
When only 3 holes remains to be opened on your ocarina, you may think that you'll crash your beloved vessel instrument on the floor, but it will never happens if you'll be holding it in this way:

If you'll see the shape of the holes of the ocarina on your fingers, it means that you are pressing too much and soon you'll not be able to continue pratciting.
Don't close the ocarina too tight, you don't have to worry because you'll not drop your ocarina on the floor, so you can try stroking the surface and search where the holes are. When you are in that position try to blow and you'll notice that you'll have the same sound as before. You must learn to gently grab your ocarina while holding it in the right position. In this way you'll be able to play well for hours!

In the video below you'll see how to position your hands on the ocarina and other useful tips for playing and some techniques.

Now that you know a better way of holding the ocarina it's time to learn some songs with it. To do so you can either go at the Learn sheet music – guide list and start learning some music theory with this tutorial, or check the sheet music section of this website and print some songs. If you don't feel prepared for sheet music yet there is also the tablature section on the website where you'll find how to play the songs graphically.

If you liked the above article, you can give us a little tip on how to improve and suggest more things like what should be done next, which songs prepare and more, please visit the Contacts and Portfolio section to send an email!
Also, donations are very welcome. To keep the service going, to help pay the copyright fees, pay the rights of the people that helped in the process of song's arrangement and more please consider donate using the button below:
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Mickji

Make ocarine since 2010. Play the ocarina and record videos since 2011. Do exhibitions since 2012 ... And teach you since 2013, no I'm kidding. Do you want to take a step forward tabs? Learn today how to read sheet music ! http://mickji.altervista.org/learn-sheet-music-guide-list/

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