Sara Vertanen

Hey everyone! I know I've basically been completely MIA here, but I'm back! (or at least I'll try much harder to be back). So a few updates, I no longer have a Facebook page and honestly, don't really miss it. But I did set up a new facebook page. Check it out and follow me there for photos and updates! https://www.facebook.com/SaraVMusic/ Additionally, I'm getting more into photography and videography. That being stated, I'm interested in offering studio portraits (specifically gearing towards the metal/rock aesthetic). Take a look at some of the shots I've been messing around with lately: Kippis! ~Sara Vertanen

Hello Everyone!! I've received a few comments on YouTube saying that the source where I originally got the sheet music for Sleeping Sun no longer has the sheet music. But hopefully this won't get taken down since it's a picture! I originally retrieved the sheets from www.blackrabbitinthedark.blogspot.com Please note that I DID NOT write this sheet music or arrange it or anything like that. Enjoy! Sara Vertanen

Hello Everyone! Just want to start off by saying THANK YOU to everyone who has subscribed, commented, liked, and watched my videos! I never expected my covers to get any interest and I'm very grateful! Miking the flute can be an 'tricky' task. There are many different publications and recommendations on how to properly amplify and record the flute so I wanted to share how I specifically record mine. Please note that I'm not an audio engineer (just an Environmental Engineer) so the following are just my opinions and experiences. Microphone Type I only own two microphones: a Shure Dynamic Mic and an MXL Large Diaphragm Condenser. I find that the dynamic mic is really not suited for recording flute in a studio setting. Great for vocals though. For recording flute, I highly recommend a large diaphragm condenser mic. My specific microphone is an MXL 1006. It's an amazing mic for the price however, it's no longer in production. I think the microphone that took...

Hey Everyone! As I'm positive many people know, I did/do not write the covers that I post on my YouTube channel. With that being said, YouTube has blocked my latest cover of Epica's song, Canvas of Life. I was able to successfully upload it onto Facebook and SoundCloud so it was very disappointing to me that I am unable to share it through YT. It's even more annoying since I retrieved the instrumental accompaniment from YouTube originally. This song is one of my favorites because it was the song were I realized that doing flute covers of metal songs was possible. Check it out on my Facebook page: www.facebook.com/sara.vertanen.7 All the best, ~Sara

Hey Everyone! I was very excited to record this cover in anticipation of their concert that happened earlier this year. I'm finally getting around to putting together some Flute Tabs for this song (Finally!! I know lol) Personally, this find that this album is one of their heaviest and one of my absolute favorites. Unchain Utopia was the second song I worked on when I began making covers. Initially, I only planned on covering the non-choir parts but found that to be a bit uninteresting. With my love for piccolo (I prefer it over flute), I found that it blended very well with the choir but was still able to be heard much better than playing the same pitch on the flute. I will always try to incorporate piccolo into symphonic metal flute covers! I really appreciate its variety of applications and styles from marches, to classical, to medieval metal and now to symphonic metal. Matching and blending the piccolo in with the flute parts for this cover requires using similar technique ...

As I'm sure many people can tell, Epica is my favorite band. Their music is so inspirational that it's really made a positive influence on my flute playing. The last time I saw Epica was in Portland, OR in 2012. During that tour, Simone was running a promotion/contest for fans to recreate one of the Requiem for the Indifferent promotional photos. I was incredibly lucky to be chosen and won a personal meet and greet in addition to the regular VIP with Simone and some of the guys on their tour bus. The prize also included MAC makeup. It was definitely one of the best concerts ever! I asked them at the Portland show if they'd ever play in Florida again and they responded, "probably not." I was so happy with the concert experience in Oregon that I didn't mind too much.  When Coen filled in for Oliver during Kamelot's tour in 2014, I asked if Epica would tour in Florida and he also responded, "probably not." So I figured Epica will n...

Hello Everyone! I've had some requests for notes for a couple of my covers. I usually don't use sheet music when doing these covers, which makes recording them rather difficult to remember, but I think I can make a Flute Tab version for some of them. Since making these flute covers is only a hobby, I don't have time in my schedule or the software to write actual sheet music. Hopefully, these tabs will be of some help! Apocalyptica has always been a rather significant part of my life. Their music has inspired me to take the flute outside of the classical and jazz genres and really integrate it into something I love very much! I never really cared for the style that Faraway Vol. 2 was sung which prompted me to try a flute cover version. Not only was this cover my first Apocalyptica cover, but it was also my first time filming it. Some of the techniques I tried to pay close attention to was the vibrato. A while back, Apocalyptica posted a webisode about different stylist...