- Betsy Sturdevant brainstorms some (tongue-in-cheek) reasons not to sharpen her bassoon reed profiler blade.
- Woodwind doubler Ed Joffe shares some practical advice about subbing on gigs.
- Flutist Nicole Riner explores some lessons about focus learned during an artist retreat.
- Joan Martí-Frasquier lists some repertoire for baritone saxophone.
- Oboist Jennet Ingle considers some ideas about motivation and doing difficult things.
- Clarinetist Michael Dean offers some small but useful performing tips.
- Flutist Jessica Quiñones shares some ways to build a private studio.
- Saxophonist Larry Weintraub recalls a day spent with Michael Brecker.
- Khara Wolf suggests solutions for oboe reeds with too-wide tip openings.
What I listen for in scholarship auditions
It’s scholarship audition season again, which means I get to meet and listen to some very nervous high school seniors (and community college sophomores).
My university is a small regional one, so our audition process probably isn’t as intense as some of the big name-brand music schools. If you’re preparing for an audition, you should definitely check in with that school to see what they expect, but here’s what I usually hear auditionees play, and what I’m thinking while I listen.
Interview: flutist Tammy Evans Yonce
Flutist Tammy Evans Yonce is an active recitalist, writer, clinician, speaker, contributor to various conferences and professional organizations, and professor at South Dakota State University (plus: she is my former classmate). Her thoughtful blog is a favorite of mine and my regular readers will recall that I have featured her posts on a number of occasions. … Read more
Favorite blog posts, November 2017
Hand-picked high-quality woodwind-related blog posts from around the web, November 2017 edition.
Hercules stand clip modification
I made a small modification to my Hercules instrument stands so I could clip them onto my instrument cases for easier carrying. The stands all have this same yellow sort of teddy-bear-head piece on the bottom: Remove the nut from the center of the bear’s forehead: I bought a handful of these. They are almost … Read more
Be suspicious of instrument bling
If you are considering buying the newest, hottest instrument, accessory, gadget, etc., it’s worth asking yourself a few questions: Is this item made out of materials that are usually used for fine jewelry or the dashboards of luxury cars? How likely is it that the most visually-attractive materials also happen to have the ideal acoustical … Read more
When you’re too sick for a lesson
Sometimes I have students cancel their lessons due to seemingly very minor, manageable health concerns (physical or mental). Other times students drag themselves to lessons when they are clearly miserable and contagious.
The better approach is clearly somewhere in the middle, but my newest college students are usually living away from their parents and the formal rules of high school for the first time and sometimes aren’t used to making those judgment calls on their own.
Favorite blog posts, October 2017
Hand-picked high-quality woodwind-related blog posts from around the web, October 2017 edition.
Sample woodwind methods syllabus
If you are teaching a woodwind methods course, you might be interested in my book.Shortly before the beginning of fall and spring semesters, I usually get a few emails from new university professors and adjuncts looking for advice and resources on teaching woodwind methods courses. I’m happy to hear from folks, but thought it might … Read more
Connecting observations to techniques
For instrumental music teachers’ feedback to be useful, it needs to connect an observation to a technique.