- Saxophonist Steve Neff shares a Joe Allard overtone exercise. (Read the comments section, too.)
- Clarinetist Diana Haskell shares some results of asking colleagues what are the most important things about orchestral playing.
- Helen Bledsoe shares some flute intonation exercises (could be adapted to other instruments).
- Clarinetist Jenny Maclay offers advice on dealing with the mental baggage of being a musician. (Reminder: blog posts are not a substitute for professional counseling.)
- Woodwind doubler Kelsey Mire makes a case for fair pay for doublers.
- Saxophonist Bill Plake digs into reasons inefficient practice techniques get perpetuated.
- Bassoonist Nadina Mackie Jackson answers questions about gender in the classical music world.
- Oboist Jennet Ingle seeks balance between expression and technique.
- Woodwind doubler David Freeman shares a funny pit experience. There are possibly teachable moments there if you care to draw them out.
- Cate Hummel discusses solutions to third-octave problems, as well as when to introduce dynamics and vibrato to students.
Achieving an ideal tone
How do you develop a tone that is characteristic, personal, and beautiful?
Practicing and breathing
Sometimes we forget to practice breathing. Don’t let your performances be derailed by panicky breathing—practice the breaths just like you practice the notes.
Follow @woodwindtips on Twitter
I have started up an additional Twitter account, @woodwindtips, which I encourage you to check out for several-times-per-day tips on woodwind playing. Enjoy!
Favorite blog posts, March 2016
Hand-picked high-quality woodwind-related blog posts from around the web, March 2016 edition.
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.