Learn the dizi, one note at a time
An interactive dizi teacher that listens and watches. China's bamboo side flute: six holes, and a thin membrane that buzzes and makes it ring bright. It hears your notes and paints the fingering on your own hands. No camera? It works by ear alone.
- Free lessons
- Nothing to install
- Nothing is recorded
Your first notes
One new note in each lesson, with a short tune to play it in.
Your dizi is the controller
Three free games you play with your dizi: every note you play moves the game.
21 songs to practice
Note by note, then through in time, at your own pace.
How it works
Three steps for every new note.
Listen
The teacher plays each new note first, so you know how it should sound.
See the fingers
A chart shows which holes to cover.
Play
It listens as you play: the right note gets a cheer, a wrong one shows what to fix.
The notes, and how to finger them
Every note it teaches, in its color, with the fingering for each.
Side-blown flute · held across, to the right · 6 holes · bright, buzzing tone
Virtual dizi
Tap a note, or play it on your keyboard, and hold it as long as you like. The picture shows which holes to cover for each note.
D
On a computer, play with your keyboard: each note shows its key. The letters are the notes' names (C plays C); hold Shift for the higher ones, and the numbers play the sharps and flats.
The sound is made in your browser: close to the real instrument, not the same.
Song packs
Themes from around the world, Christmas, half-holes and more: each pack comes with its songbook.
Read more
What is the dizi?
China's bamboo side flute: six holes, a buzzing membrane that makes it ring, and its two great families.
Music for the dizi
Folk songs, the silk-and-bamboo ensembles of the south, and the great dizi players of the twentieth century.
Your first dizi
For a beginner and a parent: which dizi to choose, putting on the membrane, holding it, blowing, and looking after it.
Questions
Do I need a real instrument?
Yes: the teacher listens to the notes you play, so you need a real instrument, with a computer, tablet or phone that has a microphone.
Do I need a camera?
No. With a camera you see the fingering painted on your own hands; without one, the lessons work by ear alone.
Is it free?
Yes. For free you get 17 lessons that take you from your very first note to playing 11 notes (D to G′), and 21 songs to play, each with its fingering and help on every note. Nothing to install.
Is anything recorded?
No. The camera and the microphone stay on your device: nothing is recorded or uploaded. The one exception is a grown-up's choice: adults who join the Player Video can record themselves playing, and only when they choose to.
Can children use it?
Yes, it's made for children's first steps, and for grown-ups starting out. Accounts are for grown-ups: a child plays with a parent's or teacher's account.
Which instruments?
Recorder, Ocarina, Bansuri (side-blown bamboo flute), Txistu, Dizi, Tin whistle. Choose yours at the top of the page, and change it at any time.
Ready? Grab your dizi.
The first lesson takes a few minutes: you'll play your first note right away.
Start the first lessonYour instrument: Dizi · Change