INDIAN RIVER COUNTY — After being gifted his first Native flute more than fifteen years ago, Armand Della Volpe made a connection with the instrument that would go on to change his life.
Now, he and his singer-guitarist wife, Angelina, travel the country performing concerts and conducting “playshops” to teach others the simple techniques for playing the five-hole hallow reed.
“We were scheduled for a concert at a festival in 2004, but when the program came out, it said ‘workshop’ instead of concert,” Armand – who prefers to be called by his first name – said. He had never taught the flute before, but decided to keep in line with what was printed and gave his very first lesson. He has been teaching ever since.
“It was a huge mistake, but that mistake has become such a wonderful part of our lives,” Armand said.
Seven-year-old Kristina Castaing attended Armand’s flute workshop with her brother, Eric Castaing, 11, and their mother, Lori Castaing.
Armand began the workshop by explaining, especially to the young ones in the group, that the Native flute is a “mistake free” flute and any time someone strayed from his “guidelines” the result would not be a mistake, but rather a “nuance.”
“No one in the world can play your flute song better than you can,” Armand told Kristina Castaing who was working on a much smaller flute to accommodate for her petite fingers.
Bonnie Mock attended the workshop to improve her skills on her own Native American flute purchased from an American Indian in Glendale, Colo. Shortly after her vacation there ended, she learned the city was affected by devastating flooding and her heart has ached ever since for the people who have had to deal with the aftermath.
After the workshop was over, Mock said she was ready to take her flute back to Colorado to channel the spirit of the Native who sold her the flute and play peaceful melodies in the mountains.
By the end of the hour-long practice session, each of Armand’s students were well on their way to mastering techniques like the “trill,” “bend,” and “trail.” Even young Kristina Castaing stepped up to play a solo-recital for the rest of the class.
Armand and Angelina will be sharing their story and singing their way through classical-pop songs in their own “P’opera” style on Wednesday evening at 7 p.m. at the Unity Center of Vero Beach.
