- Jess Voigt Page: Selecting repertoire while you’re in school
- Bill Plake Music: Remember to Pay Attention to This Important (Yet Too Often Overlooked) Component of Your Practice Routine
- Dr. Cate’s Flute Tips (Cate Hummel): The Secret of Tuning Up Db (C#)
- Jenny Maclay: 30 Day Self Care Challenge for Musicians
- LearnSaxophoneOnline.com (Jeffrey Cunningham): Crystal Clear Articulation
- Observing Focal Dystonia (Andrée Martin): Lose your GPS
- Trent Jacobs, bassoonist: Addressing Stress VPI
- oboeinsight (Patty Mitchell): The Internet Is Not Always Your Friend
- International Clarinet Association (Nicola Buckenmaier): Caroline Schleicher-Krähmer: The First Female Clarinet Soloist
Review: D’Addario Evolution clarinet mouthpieces
D’Addario was kind enough to send me a couple of their new(ish) Reserve Evolution clarinet mouthpieces to try out. The Evolution currently comes in a single opening/facing, but the two Evolution mouthpieces I received are different in appearance: one is the standard black, and the other is what’s called “marble” on D’Addario’s website, or “sandstone … Read more
Calculating gig fees
It took a while in my freelancing career to get a handle on how to respond when people ask what I charge for my services as a performer. I live in a remote, rural area (where my university day job is located) and there isn’t a musicians’ union presence, so I’m on my own in … Read more
Recital videos, August 2019
Here are videos from my recent faculty recital at Delta State University. I performed the Saint-Saëns oboe, bassoon, and clarinet sonatas, plus the flute Romance and “The Swan” from The Carnival of the Animals as a baritone saxophone transcription. “The Swan” is originally for cello, so I assumed it might work well as a baritone … Read more
Favorite blog posts, August 2019
Hand-picked high-quality woodwind-related blog posts from around the web, August 2019 edition.
Focus on fundamentals, not localized fixes
As I’ve discussed here previously, when trying to solve woodwind-playing problems there’s a useful distinction between problem-specific solutions and simply shoring up fundamental technique. Here are some examples of problem-specific solutions: Second-octave G-sharp tends to crack on saxophone, especially tenor? When you get to that note, blow warmer air (in other words, use a lower … Read more
Using the Fingering Diagram Builder’s advanced keywork controls
The most recent release of the Fingering Diagram Builder introduces some “shortcut” controls that make it easy to turn certain keys on and off. For example, with a quick check/un-check of a box you can turn on clarinet half-holes or some non-standard keys. Or, as always, there’s a dropdown list of “key sets” (which I … Read more
Your first lesson with your college instrument teacher
Every teacher is different, but here are some ideas of what you might expect when you take your first instrumental lesson with your new college teacher. Before the semester starts: When you have your login information, check your new university email and LMS (it might be something like “Canvas,” “Blackboard,” or “Moodle”—a site you can … Read more
Favorite blog posts, July 2019
Hand-picked high-quality woodwind-related blog posts from around the web, August 2019 edition.
Fingering Diagram Builder, version 0.8
I’m pleased to announce a new release of the Fingering Diagram Builder. One thing I wanted to do in this release is give something back to the very generous and sexy people who have been kind enough to use the PayPal donation link to show their support over the years, so I’ve added some special … Read more