Shopping list of a reedmaker.
Saturday April 12 2008
300 single edged razor blades.
10 fat, wide nail files (the pink and the yellow work the best for me)
super glue
Yeah, I get some weird looks when I show up with bloodshot eyes and a sniffly nose (from allergies) and purchase 300 razor blades.
Read the Rest
Recital… Working on it.
Saturday April 12 2008
I’m trying to find a venue, because the day and venue I had has been vetoed by my Prof who will be out of town. Right now it seems like everything is filling up. And yes Patty, “Hindesmith” was a typo with that extra “s”.
Sound in motion
Saturday April 12 2008
Patty blogged about this book recently and I’ve finally had some time to pick it up and begin reading through it. It’s a quick read, and is filled with many anecdotes and quotes that make you stop and think about, but I can say I do agree with every one of them.
As a musician, I think there’s been nothing new in Sound in Motion that I haven’t been told or have read in another book as of yet (I’m halfway through), but what is done in this book that hasn’t been done previously is that it’s stated in a very accessible way. At times, Thurmond’s Note Groupings can get a bit heavy and complicated but David McGill keeps this book easy to understand. There have been many times where I have read something in the book and said “That’s exactly right! I could just never describe it!”
One excerpt I enjoyed quoting my oboe idol John de Lancie:
My woodwind instructor, John de Lancie began his first freshman class each year at the Curtis Institute of Music by asking: “What is music?” This bombshell brought forth many timid responses such as “tone,” “pitch,” “dynamics,” “phrasing,” “line,” and “sound.” Once a student hit upon “sound,” de Lancie explained that sound itself is indeed an essential element. But then shouldn’t street noises or rustling leaves be considered music? To some, they are “music to the ears,” but they are not structured, ordered sound as in musical composition. To further steer our thinking, de Lancie used the analogy of an animal sitting in a faraway field. He asked us, “How could you tell if this animal is alive?” The obvious response came forth: “If it moves.” With that, Mr. de Lancie followed with his definition: “Music is sound in motion.“
C series oboe
Saturday April 12 2008
I sent off my oboe to Mr. Weber to get checked up and have been playing on this CL series Loree. This is my first time spending a lot of time with a fabled “C series oboe“ and its really surprising to me how different my reeds need to be for this instrument. Mr. Weber has a C series oboe but he’s reamed it out a bazillion times and so I’m not even sure you could call it any series anymore; it’s just a Weber series.
My reeds for the C series are bordering on 70-71, with not much definition at all. The top notes (side octave) feel slightly blown out and so I’m forced to build reeds that I can continue blowing a lot into, but maintain focus and stability. My reeds are much thicker and heavier, and comparing my reeds for this baby to the reeds I would have made for my Royal, I seriously wonder if its possible to make reeds “for the general census”. Instruments are too different, and unless you have a remotely similar feeling instrument, a reed is always going to come up a bit lacking.
The C series oboe is doing some very nice things for my playing. It’s giving me a lot of flexibility and sparkle in the sound. In fact, Friday in rehearsal my orchestra conductor gave me the highest praise he has all year, saying “That oboe solo was just perfect. The dynamic, the direction, don’t change it!” The man doesn’t dish out compliments, so I was very honored by his words.
The other major different is the C series is making me use my air with more flexibility. I really have to vary my airstream a lot, whereas with the Royal I just blew and blew and blew. Since it’s a bit blown out in the top joint, I have to change my airstream that much more. The overall results are a heightened consciousness of what I’m doing with the my body and the instrument.
Read the RestBaroque oboe
Friday April 11 2008
After trying a bunch of the modern oboes, Adam pulled out his Denner oboe made by Sand Dalton and demonstrated the Baroque oboe. He’s quite gifted on it as well! He also has a Bosworth, a Eichentopf, and a Stanesby Kube, the last of which I received today to play around with! So I’m trying to figure out how to do this Baroque oboe thing. Now if only I can figure out the reeds—