The basic physics of the flute is presented from the perspective of a professional flutist. The
flutist can control loudness, pitch and to some extent timbre. Oscilloscope images are provided to
compare changes in these three fundamental sound characteristics. Readers can view a video (Ruiz
2017 Video: The Flute http://mjtruiz.com/ped/flute/ [http://mjtruiz.com/ped/flute/] ) where
coauthor, flutist Erika Boysen, demonstrates the topics covered in this paper.