- Saxophonist Steve Neff explores the “holy grail” mindset with regard to mouthpieces.
- Flutist Nicole Riner offers tips on making a living as a freelancer.
- John Isley discusses finding a personal voice on wind controller.
- Oboist Jennet Ingle discusses integrity in musical interpretation. (Note: also some political content.) Jennet’s new video series on reedmaking is also worth checking out.
- Clarinetist Jenny Maclay shares a method for transitioning back into serious practicing after summer vacation.
- Kristopher King shares an interesting bassoon museum piece.
- Erin Nichols shows off acoustic paneling made especially for flute playing.
Nicole Riner
Favorite blog posts, July 2017
- Check out posts by a small army of bloggers documenting ClarinetFest® 2017.
- David Wells is working on collecting the Paris Conservatoire bassoon contest pieces.
- Woodwind doubler Ed Joffe encourages continuing your musical studies beyond school
- Saxophonist Roxy Coss discusses women as an under-represented group in jazz music.
- David Mankin shares a fascinating story about oboists Robert Bloom and Engelbert Brenner in a remarkable recording session.
- Clarinetist Jeremy Wohletz explains the importance of aural training.
- Saxophonist Sam Newsome identifies some issues that lead to rhythm problems (particularly in improvised music).
- Flutist Tammy Evans Yonce explains how she approaches a new repertoire piece.
- Saxophonist Ben Britton catalogs some methods of dealing with sticky G-sharp keys.
- Eryn Oft outlines the history of Heckel bassoons.
- Nicole Riner offers suggestions on making first contact with a potential college flute teacher. (Applicable to other instruments, too.)
- Jenny Maclay dives deep on clarinet resonance fingerings.
Favorite blog posts, February 2017
Another month dominated by flute bloggers. Leave me a comment if there are excellent blogs by reed players that I should be reading.
- Jolene Harju shares a calendar of flute practice ideas. (It’s for February, but easily adaptable to other months.)
- Heather Roche continues her massive and thorough project documenting extended clarinet techniques with a chart of quarter-tone tremolo fingerings for bass clarinet.
- Flutist Nicole Riner shares resources for commissioning new music.
- Flutist Tammy Evans Yonce requires her woodwind pedagogy students to teach private mini-lessons.
- Flutist Rachel Taylor Geier offers suggestions on making a recording for a job application or audition.
- Cate Hummel explains playing the flute softly.
Favorite blog posts, January 2017
The flute bloggers have been busy this month.
- Cynthia Ellis offers some ideas on altering flute fingerings with the right pinky.
- Saxophonist Bill Plake provides some clarity on economy of movement vs. economy of effort.
- Flutist Nicole Riner shares some ideas and resources related to the importance of hard work over talent.
- Clarinetist Chastine Hofmeister gives some advice to young musicians on solo competitions.
- Flutist Jolene Harju offers suggestions on rejuvenating your warm-up routine.
- Flutist Nicole Chamberlain suggests prioritizing.
Favorite blog posts, September 2016
So many great woodwind blog posts in September. The flute bloggers are on fire!
- Deanna Mathews Kilbourne offers some fingering tips for the flute’s notoriously sharp C-sharp.
- Oboist Jennet Ingle explores quarter tones. Also, an open letter to her students about making their own reeds.
- Flutist Nicole Riner shares some creative practice tips.
- Ed Joffe discusses the history of woodwind doubling.
- Flutist Angela McCuiston gets into some nuts and bolts of teaching lessons remotely via internet.
- Bassoonist Jolene Mason experiences burnout.
- Flutist Andrée Martin warns against mindless, repetitive practicing.
- Joan Martí-Frasquier provides an annotated list of amateur/student-appropriate baritone saxophone repertoire.
- Flutist Rachel Taylor Geier offers some suggestions on lesson scheduling.
- Viviana Guzman reports on the National Flute Association conference.