An ocarina is a miniature flute that people of all ages enjoy - both adults and kids. It is one of the easiest of the wind instruments to learn and play, in fact, most ocarina musicians have taught themselves to play. Many ocarinas are rugged, portable, and small enough to go anywhere - rock climbing, on vacations, in your purse or pocket, canoeing, on camping trips, or in your kid's backpack. The ocarina is a great way to introduce a person of any age - kids or adults - to music as well as an instrument that can be enjoyed and played through all stages of life.

1. What style do I want, inline or transverse? Ocarinas come in two basic types, transverse and inline. The transverse style (like the sweet potato) is blown very much like a standard Boehm flute where the flute is held at a ninety degree angle to the head. The inline style is played very much like a recorder or clarinet where you blow into the length of the flute. I find that the inline style is more comfortable to play for extended periods of time.

2. Do you want a clay, wood, metal or plastic ocarina? A few thoughts. Clay is like glass in that it can break or shatter if dropped. Nice wood ocarinas can be quite gorgeous. Metal ocarinas are rare, but some are stunning. There is definitely no shortage cheap plastic ocarinas... toys. However, some plastic ocarinas are performance worthy instruments that are made of high tech plastic materials like polycarbonate.

3. Are you a life long fan of the video game Zelda The Ocarina of Time? If so, then you might want an ocarina like the one Link plays.

4. Do you like the way this flute's ocarina notes sound? Have you heard this ocarina played live? If not, do you have nice recorded ocarina music samples to listen to? Have you seen ocarina video of this flute?

5. How far (musically) do you want to go with your ocarina? Do you want something to amuse you for a few weeks? Or do you want a serious instrument that will let you grow to high levels of musicianship? Do you already know how to play the ocarina? If you wish to go far musically and will put in the needed practice to get good, get an ocarina that you won't grow out of... that will let you progress to virtuosity.

6. Do you like how this ocarina looks? If you think your ocarina is stunning, you will very likely carry it more, show it to family and friends more, play it more, progress farther and faster, and enjoy it much more.

7. What kind of music do you want to play with your ocarina? If you want to play simple, slower melodies then most ocarinas will do just fine. If you want to play technically challenging and fast music, most will not work. Make sure you hear sound samples of the ocarinas you are considering, and make sure they can play the kind of ocarina sheet music you want to play.

If you're looking for an instrument that fits into your life, as opposed to the other way around, the ocarina very well may be the musical instrument that you've been looking for. For many people, learning to play an instrument is something we have long wanted to do, but never quite got around to. Maybe now is the time to get started? 

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