Announcements and news Archives | Page 7 of 13

Flute Pro Shop interview with Tereasa Payne and Simon Hutchings

July 23, 2022March 2, 2012 by Bret Pimentel

There’s a nice interview by Joan Sparks at the Flute Pro Shop blog, with two woodwind doublers who happen to be married to each other, Tereasa Payne and Simon Hutchings. They discuss doubling, careers, and married life.

I can’t imagine being in a marriage with anyone other than a musician. Everyone makes sacrifices for what they value in life, but the time and commitment involved in becoming, and being, a professional musician…it’s so time consuming, and emotionally challenging – I imagine it’s like being married to an athlete. That being said, given that we are both woodwind doublers, with different “primary” instruments, our marriage is perfect (in so many ways!!!) in the sense that we are able to advise and support each other to a greater degree than almost any situation would allow.

Check it out at Flute Pro Shop on the Road.

University of Northern Iowa offers new multiple woodwinds degree

January 1, 2018February 19, 2012 by Bret Pimentel

The University of Northern Iowa is now offering a Master of Music degree with a multiple woodwinds (3-instrument) emphasis. A few points of interest, according to degree information from their website: Students take 6 credit hours of study on a “primary” instrument, and 4 hours on a “secondary” instrument, and must “demonstrate proficiency” on a … Read more

2011 in review, and a New Year’s resolution

January 1, 2018December 30, 2011 by Bret Pimentel

Here are a few of my favorite blog articles from 2011, for your re-reading pleasure:

A shocking 187 woodwind doublers participated in my Great Woodwind Doubler Census, and I reported the findings in exhaustive (exhausting?) detail.
I was pleased to announce the releases of versions 0.2 and 0.3 of the Fingering diagram builder, and to introduce a lot of features and improvements. The plan at this point is to continue to work on it as time permits, and I’ve got a few ideas up my sleeve that I hope you will like. I also shared some of the impetus behind the FDB, and some of the problems I hope it will, in a small way, help to solve.
I started a series of do-it-yourself posts dealing with simple woodwind repair tasks (such as replacing saxophone palm key pads and replacing tenon corks), which I hope to continue in the coming year.
I started a series of interviews with people working in cool woodwind-related jobs, which I hope to continue. (I’m interested in your nominations/requests.)
I harnessed some frustration about teaching private lessons, and channeled it into creating a little game (the bidding war between Parker Brothers and Milton Bradley is still ongoing).
I ranted about classical musicians’ attitudes toward jazz and jazz musicians.
I reported on some fun offline woodwind-related activities, including the Clarinet Academy of the South, the National Flute Association conference, and my own annual faculty recital at Delta State University.
I explained a little about the intersection between my faith and my music.
I expounded what I think is a really crucial concept in woodwind playing, which the woodwind-blog-reading community received with a deafening roar of almost no attention whatsoever. I guess they can’t all be winners. Come back and read it again when you get into playing ethnic flutes, and thank me later.

Remember, you can keep up with my humble blog in 2012 via feed reader, Twitter, or email. I try to cover a lot of ground here, so if you’re interested in narrowing things down, you can find a blog article you like and click on any of the related “instruments,” “categories,” or “topics,” and then subscribe by RSS or email up near the top of the page, under the main header and just above the first article on the page, like so:

Also, I love to hear from the highly intelligent, talented, and attractive people who read my stuff, so please don’t hesitate to check in if you see something you like, something you don’t like, or something you would like to see more or less of. Or if you just want to say hello.

And, as promised:

My New Year’s resolution

Introducing the Random note picker

January 1, 2018December 4, 2011 by Bret Pimentel

Here’s a little web app that I put together for quizzing my university students on their scales. (The music majors all have to pass a scale exam, playing randomly-selected major and minor scales.) I hope it’s useful to somebody out there: Quiz students (or yourself) on scales, arpeggios, fingerings, key signatures, ii-V7-I patterns, chord voicings, … Read more

Farewell: Himie Voxman

January 3, 2018November 22, 2011 by Bret Pimentel

Influential music educator and longtime University of Iowa faculty member Himie Voxman has passed away at the age of 99. If you are a woodwind player, you have almost certainly used, at some point in your musical studies, something written or edited by Professor Voxman. Check out the Iowa City Press-Citizen’s tribute for a nice overview … Read more

Free music: five Arno Bornkamp saxophone albums

January 1, 2018November 8, 2011 by Bret Pimentel

Check it out: Dutch classical saxophone virtuoso Arno Bornkamp has made five of his albums available for free download from his website. There’s a real wealth of repertoire here, and beautifully played. Did I mention free?

The Doublers Collective: progressive jazz saxophone quintet

March 15, 2017October 6, 2011 by Bret Pimentel

The Doublers Collective is a new quintet of accomplished jazz saxophonists with strong doubling abilities, based in Phoenix, Arizona. The group is the brainchild of Monica Shriver, who I had the pleasure of meeting at the NASA conference last year. Check them out in this video: For more about the Doublers Collective: visit their website follow … Read more

New sound clips: Faculty woodwinds recital, Aug. 30, 2011

July 6, 2012September 20, 2011 by Bret Pimentel

I’m pleased to share some audio from my Delta State University faculty recital a few weeks ago.The big event of the evening was the premiere of Sy Brandon’s Divertissement for multiple woodwinds and piano, which seemed to be well received. It’s gratifying to be involved in the creation of a piece that fills a gap in the small multiple woodwinds repertoire—something than can be played by a woodwind doubler, without having to bring in a concert band, a truckload of electronics, or obscure instruments. The audience seemed to enjoy the derring-do of the final movement, which involves six instruments.

Brandon: Divertissement (flute, alto saxophone, bassoon, clarinet, oboe, piccolo)

I’ve studied the Bonneau Caprice en forme de valse in the past and have had students perform it, but this was the first time I played it in public myself. Since I’m trying to balance a half-dozen or more instruments, I tend to shy away from pieces that seem too technical, and, in that respect, this was the riskiest piece on the program. I was mostly pleased with how it turned out.

Bonneau: Caprice en forme de valse (alto saxophone)

Divertissement for multiple woodwinds now available

July 23, 2022September 19, 2011 by Bret Pimentel

Sy Brandon’s Divertissement for multiple woodwinds and piano is now available for purchase. If you’re a regular reader, you know that I commissioned this piece with funding from a Co-op Press Commission Assistance grant, and you have already read my series of blog posts about the genesis of Divertissement.

The piece is now available for purchase from the Co-op press website [update: now available from JW Pepper, with each movement sold separately]. It’s priced at an extraordinarily reasonable $6.95 for a PDF download (at the time of this writing), and U.S. customers can opt for a print copy for a still-affordable $16.95. The individual movements, any of which would make a charming short piece for a recital, are also available at just under two bucks apiece (PDF).

Among the few pieces in existence for multiple woodwinds soloist, this one has, in my opinion, the fewest logistical barriers to performance: it doesn’t require a large or unusual ensemble (just soloist and pianist), and it doesn’t require any unusual instruments, electronics, or other gear. There is also some flexibility in which instruments are used—movements may be selected from:

Intrada (flute)
Nocturne (alto saxophone)
Valse (bassoon)
Marche (clarinet)
Romanza (oboe)
Galop (piccolo/flute/oboe/clarinet/bassoon/alto saxophone, OR just piccolo)

For flute/clarinet/saxophone doublers, the Intrada, Nocturne, Marche, and Galop (piccolo version) would make quite a nice combination.

Fingering diagram builder, version 0.3

January 1, 2018September 10, 2011 by Bret Pimentel

I’m pleased to announce some updates and improvements to the Fingering diagram builder. Thanks to all who have used it, and especially to all who have reported bugs, made suggestions, Tweeted or blogged about it, or offered compliments. And a very special thanks indeed to those who have used the “Send me reed money” link to support the FDB financially.

Go poke around the new-and-improved FDB, or read on for the full scoop.