A wooden fife was my first transverse instrument. I took it camping for a week and picked it up whenever I thought of it. By the end of the week I was able to get notes out of it. (I still can't say that's a very useful instrument.)

Long after that, I bought a wooden flute in D. I made an appointment with a flute teacher and told her, "I've had it two weeks, and I can only play an octave!" She said, "Do you realize that there are people who buy a flute and can't get their first note out for months?"

In case you don't play flute, here are a few basic tips.

1. The easiest note to produce is the one that takes the three fingers of your left hand. Low note and high notes are harder.

2.   Moisten your lips.

3.   Hold your head up. (Dipping your chin closes your throat.)

4.   My fife is in B flat. It's lowest note is a B flat, and when I lift one finger after another, I produce a B flat scale. For some reason, the music and fingering chart that came with it pretended that it was in D. I had to write the seller a complaining letter before they told me what was going on.

5.   Pretend you are in a room and there is a large china cabinet in the opposite corner. To play a low note, aim the jet of air at the base of the cabinet. To play the middle notes, send the air to the middle of the cabinet, and to play the high notes, send the jet to the top of it.

6.   If you are reading music and your neck and shoulders hurt, put the music to your left and look over your left shoulder.

Hope this helps. Let us know what happens.