- David Wells discusses composing cadenzas for the Mozart bassoon concerto (and shares his finished product).
- Jill Cathey shares some techniques she is using to improve her oboe reedmaking, including giving her reeds names.
- Saxophonist Eddie Rich legislates three laws of practicing [update: link dead].
- Cindy Ellis explains the function of each lip in the flute embouchure.
- Jennet Ingle explains (and demonstrates in a video) a technique for cleaning out oboe reeds.
- Manny Martinez suggests 10 classical saxophone recordings to check out.
- Trent Jacobs uses a power tool to make bassoon reeds.
- Cate Hummel continues her crusade against questionable “kiss-and-roll” flute embouchure pedagogy, and has an insight into that technique’s popularity.
- Jeff Cunningham explores some of the “ups & downs” for beginning saxophonists. It’s good context and advice for woodwind doublers, too, who may be at beginner stage on a secondary instrument.
- Bassoonist Andrew Burn shares some unconventional ideas about recital preparation.
- David Freeman logs a gig experience covering Pink Floyd’s Dark Side of the Moon album, and shares saxophone solo transcriptions.
- Khara Wolf discusses aspects of high-altitude oboe reedmaking.
- Helen Kahlke shares a review of an inexpensive bass saxophone. Don’t reach for your wallets yet, but the takeaway here is that playable, affordable, modern saxophones lower than baritone could be on the horizon.
- Also, I am now a co-author, with Kellie Lignitz-Hahn, of the “Clarinet Cache” column in The Clarinet (journal of the International Clarinet Association), and the related blog. Check it out online or in your latest print issue.
Woodwind doubling for flutists
Here is a cleaned-up version of my lecture notes from a presentation on woodwind doubling I gave last week at the Mid-South Flute Festival: Woodwind doubling for flutists What is doubling? Primary-to-secondary doubling: Playing multiple instruments within a family, such as flute (primary), piccolo (secondary), and alto flute (secondary) Primary-to-primary doubling: Playing instruments from different families, … Read more
Repair or buy new?
Should you have your old (woodwind) instrument repaired, or put the money toward a new one? Here are a few things to consider. First, you should understand the difference between having “playing condition” repairs done and having a full overhaul done. The overhaul is an expensive service, often costing a significant percentage of what you would spend … Read more
Thoughts on musicians’ websites
I first set up a personal website in about 2000 or 2001. There wasn’t much reason for me to do so—I was a college undergraduate, with virtually no worthwhile content to share. But it was a start, and fifteen or sixteen years later I have a few hundred blog posts and some other resources, plus a … Read more
Favorite blog posts, February 2016
Hand-picked high-quality woodwind-related blog posts from around the web, February 2016 edition.
Trevor Wye’s “Flexibility I” flute exercise
One of my favorite flute warmups is “Flexibility–I (after Sousseman)” from Trevor Wye’s Tone book. This exercise is value-packed and meticulously thought out, and leads inevitably to some fundamental truths about flute playing.
Beginners, parents, and making double reeds
If you are a parent or band director of a young oboist or bassoonist, here is what you need to know about reedmaking.
Practice slump checklist
Sometimes my students complain that they have had bad practicing days or weeks. Here are a few ideas for breaking out of a practicing slump.
Favorite blog posts, January 2016
Hand-picked high-quality woodwind-related blog posts from around the web, January 2016 edition.
Creating fingering charts with diagrams from the Fingering Diagram Builder
Here are a few examples of how to create fingering charts with diagrams from the Fingering Diagram Builder, using music notation software, using a word processor, and using a text editor to create HTML code (such as for a website).