Unlike other social networks, you do not need to create an account to use YouTube, which allows you to anonymously search and view its content. Watching videos is straightforward - press the “Play” button, and the video streams to your computer or mobile device. You can pause/rewind/fast-forward as many times as you like. Under the settings cog (see picture below), you can make further adjustments to the video, including slowing down or speeding up the playback speed. This is especially useful when using a YouTube video to help learn a new piece of music, or hear a particular ornament.

Google bought YouTube nearly 20 years ago and it now operates as a subsidiary, which means that people can use their Google ID to sign into YouTube. This gives you more flexibility in engaging with the videos you watch. If you decide to log in with your Google ID (or create a Google ID to log in), you can then: save your favorite videos for quick viewing, comment on or rate videos, create playlists of videos you enjoy for easy access, subscribe to your favorite artists and keep up to date when they post new material, and even operate your own channel, should you choose to do so. You can create your own personal library of favored recorder-technique videos or a playlist of the most dazzling recorder concertos!

The ARS hosts a number of informative videos on our ARS YouTube Channel. If you are a member and receive our American Recorder Magazine, then you may already be familiar with the hyperlinks that some of our articles contain. These hyperlinks frequently take you to our YouTube channel for instructional or demonstrative videos that enhance the article’s content. A number of our videos relate to AR articles, but many of them stand alone as instructional/informative videos (see our AR Extras webpage). We have two playlists affiliated with our AR Magazine that you may find of interest even if you don’t have access to the articles themselves: 

• American Recorder: media files to accompany articles
• Music Reviews

Our ARS channel also includes a number of instructional and informational videos of interest to the blossoming recorder enthusiast, including: 

• A beginners’ series on How to Play the Recorder taught by Vicki Boeckman;
• A very informative and popular video by recorder maker Tom Prescott on Taking Care of Your Recorder;
• An excerpt from the 2015 Documentary on Friedrich von Huene;
• A series of recorder technique videos that cover a number of topics (e.g. breath control, articulations) from recorder professionals Lobke Sprenkeling, Tina Chancey, Michael Lynn, and others;
• An Ornamentation Series by Michael Lynn;
• The American Recorder Practice Project by Tina Chancey;
• Play-the-Recorder-Month music and virtual events;
• And more, including our favorite professional recorder soloists and ensembles who are included in our “Featured Channels” at the bottom of our YouTube channel. If you are looking for new recorder-related ensembles to check out, this is a great place to start. 

In addition to the technique videos on our YouTube channel, the ARS has a series of Technique Tip Videos on our website that cover a myriad of topics to help beginner to more advanced players. We encourage you to browse both our YouTube channel and the instructional videos on our website to help tackle that recorder-related challenge.