Why are my ocarina's high notes airy or flat?

Updated 2026-10-27

Ocarina high notes most often come out airy or flat because they need more breath than you are giving them. Ocarinas are tuned so that higher notes need more air pressure than low ones, and on many 12-hole ocarinas the top three notes need a sharp jump. The other usual causes are a hole that is not fully sealed, a finger hovering over an open hole, and a cold ocarina. If you have ruled those out and the high notes are still airy, the ocarina itself may be badly made.

It is one of the most common beginner problems. In our random sample of 100 r/Ocarina question posts by beginners from the last three years, 25 were about breath and technique, and airy, shrill or flat high notes are among the usual complaints.

Why do ocarina high notes need more air?

Each note on an ocarina is in tune at one breath pressure, and on most ocarinas that pressure rises as you open more holes. Pure Ocarinas explains: "As holes are opened, air can escape the chamber, and the high notes become increasingly airy-sounding. To compensate for this, ocarinas are tuned with a pressure curve that ramps up towards the high end." Under-blow a high note and it comes out airy and flat at once. Over-blow it and it goes sharp, then screeches.

The difference is bigger than most beginners expect. Pure Ocarinas measured the pressure every note of one ocarina needed: low C played in tune at 36 units on its gauge, and high F needed 83, more than twice as much. With a tuner, finger a high note and raise your breath slowly until the reading reaches the target. In Pure Ocarinas' words, "you may be surprised just how much pressure is required relative to the low notes."

What else makes ocarina high notes airy or flat?

• A finger hovering over an open hole makes the note slightly flat. Pure Ocarinas: "Even if a finger hole is open, there is a notable distance where the presence of a finger will 'shade' the hole, causing the ocarina to play flatter than it should." To test it, play the high note while holding the ocarina by its ends, so no finger is near a hole.
• A hole that is not fully sealed makes a note airy, sharp or squeaky. Cover each hole with the flat pad of your finger, never the tip (Pure Ocarinas lists tip-covering among its seven common mistakes), and press each covering finger down in turn until the sound clears.
• A note that is too low can mean the side of a finger is resting on one of the two small sub-holes of a 12-hole ocarina. They exist to "allow you to play lower notes", so covering one by accident pulls a note down.
• A cold ocarina plays every note a little flat. Pure Ocarinas puts the effect "at about 1 cent per degree Celsius"; play for a minute to warm it before you judge.
• A whistling noise on the high notes can be your own palm. Pure Ocarinas: "If this fast-moving air hits your left palm, it makes a noise." Keep your hand out of the airstream.
• An ocarina that has suddenly turned airy may have dirt in the windway. Pure Ocarinas suggests folding a strip of paper and pushing it gently through.
• A high note that screeches before it reaches pitch means blowing too hard, a cold room or a poorly tuned ocarina. Pure Ocarinas: "In very cold environments, the high notes will screech before they reach concert pitch."

Should I use the acute bend for high notes?

Teachers disagree. Songbird Ocarina teaches the acute bend for the top notes of an alto C: "tilt your head and ocarina downward, so that the ocarina is parallel to your chest". Pure Ocarinas thinks it mostly changes what the player hears and writes: "I do not recommend using this technique, as it is ergonomically awkward and looks silly in a performance. Any ocarina marketed as 'needing' this technique is a bad instrument." Try the breath and finger checks above first.

Are airy high notes my fault or the ocarina's?

Usually breath, but not always. Pure Ocarinas notes that "Airy high notes are also a symptom of badly made ocarinas", and that if the notes are still airy after you have checked your breath, the windway and your angle, the ocarina "is likely poorly made". Our guide Is my ocarina out of tune, or is it me? walks through the test that tells the two apart, and our buying guide covers ocarinas that players trust.

Can a tuner tell why my high notes are flat?

Partly. A microphone hears pitch very precisely, but it cannot see your hands, your mouth or the angle you hold the ocarina at. So a tuner can point at a likely cause from the pattern of readings: high notes sagging further the higher you go points at breath; one note far off on its own points at a leaking hole, a covered sub-hole or the instrument. It cannot tell you which finger leaks or whether your angle is off. For those, use a mirror.

Our tuner is being built to show exactly this. Until it is live, any chromatic tuner app with a numeric cents display will do.

What exercise helps ocarina high notes most?

Stepping up the scale against a tuner. Pure Ocarinas suggests a long tone on low C to learn its pressure, then one on D, "noticing the pressure difference between C and D", then both in one breath, "making the pressure change needed so that the D begins in tune". Carry on note by note up to the top. Our guide to breath control has more exercises.