- International Clarinet Association (Di Xiaoyan and Zhai Xingxing): International Spotlight: How to Play “Pitch Bending Tones” on the Clarinet (English Version)
- Jennet Ingle | Oboist: Adding Punctuation
- The Flute Examiner (Jessica Dunnavant): Tune In, Tune Out
- Rachel Taylor Geier (flute): Earning Your Keep – 100 Ways to Make Money as a Flutist
- The Flute View (Morgan Pappas): The Importance of Having an Electronic Press Kit
Rachel Taylor Geier
Favorite blog posts, April 2022
- Flute Journal (Jessica Valiente): The 19th-Century French Five-Key Flute and the Modern Boehm-System Flute in Cuban Charanga
- Blue Moon Bassoon Blog (Amanda Pierce): 10 Helpful Things I Wish I Knew Before Teaching Private Music Lessons
- Rachel Taylor Geier (flute): The Gizmo Key
- The Flute Examiner (Keith Hanlon): Arm-Chair Experts and Filtering Forum Content
- bassoon blog (Betsy Sturdevant): Playing the bassoon in an orchestra
- Jennet Ingle | Oboist: Reedmaking Fear and Anxiety
Favorite blog posts, February 2022
- Steve Neff Music Blog (saxophone): Do Mouthpiece Patches and Beak Height Make a Difference to the Sound of a Saxophone?
- LearnTinWhistle.com: Best Tin Whistle Books
- The Flute Examiner (Jessica Dunnavant): Career Day
- Jenny Maclay (clarinet): Repertoire Research Checklist for Students
- Rachel Taylor Geier (flute): Fixing a Faulty Trill – Dr. G’s Top Five Trill Etude Recommendations
Favorite blog posts, December 2021
- Khara Wolf (oboe): Musician Health and Wellness Resource List
- The Flute View (Ory Schneor): Ory’s Flute Tips The reasons for your difficulties playing pianissimo on the flute
- Rachel Taylor Geier (flute): Top Flute Blogs
Favorite blog posts, August 2021
- EG-REEDS (Éric González, oboe): The importance of previous postural and respiratory work at the beginning of the study of woodwind instruments.
- Rachel Taylor Geier (flute): The Myth of the Magic Formula
- Bill Plake Music (saxophone): For This “Career Ending Condition”, There Is Hope
- The Flute Examiner (Kelly Wilson): Do You See What I See?
- Jenny Maclay (clarinet): 10 Ways to Create More Musical Phrases
Favorite blog posts, March 2020
- Practice Monster (David Pope, saxophone): Circular Breathing
- Sax ProShop: #WednesdayWisdom: Sanitizing Your Mouthpiece & Instrument
- Trent Jacobs, bassoonist: Bassoon fingering chart and On communicable diseases and buying reeds
- heather roche: “Ultra-Underblow Mutiphonics”: Part 2 of the recategorisation of Philip Rehfeldt’s chart
- Rachel Taylor Geier (flute): Imperfect Balance – Hand Position Correctors
- The Bassic Sax Blog » (Helen Kahlke): Is a vintage sax right for me?
- The Vintage Clarinet Doctor – Blog (Jeremy Soule): mouthpiece porn vs Mouthpiece Monogamy
- The Flute View (Lauren Monteiro): 4 Rules for Recording Your Practice
- International Clarinet Association (Wesley Ferreira): Master Class: Fantasiestücke (Fantasy Pieces), Op. 43 by Niels Gade
- Jenny Maclay (clarinet): 31 Clarinet Compositions Written by Female Composers
- Music Major – Majoring in Music: Music School Decisions When You Can’t Visit
Favorite blog posts, April 2018
The flute bloggers were especially busy in April.
- Flutist Nicole Riner shares some research-based recommendations (from 2004) about gender stereotypes and school band programs.
- Jolene Harju Madewell prioritizes aspects of flute tone production.
- Michelle Barraclough discusses orchestra pit playing for flutists.
- Roderick Seed gives tips on improving flute resonance.
- Flutist Rachel Taylor Geier offers advice on recital preparation.
- Bassoonist Betsy Sturdevant continues her series of orchestral excerpt blog-masterclasses with the Berlioz Symphonie Fantastique.
- Woodwind player Larry Weintraub explores musical careers on cruise ships and in European publicly-funded ensembles.
Favorite blog posts, September 2017
- Flutist Jennifer Cluff offers advice on (not) playing with pain.
- Clarinetist Jenny Maclay invites you to enlist for Baermann Boot Camp starting October 1st.
- Cate Hummel shares tips on basic flute care.
- Flutist Jolene Harju discusses breaking the habit of playing “test notes.”
- Rachel Taylor Geier challenges you to test your flute knowledge with a quiz.
- Oboist Jennet Ingle finds inspiration in fancy fountain pens regarding “flourish.”
Each of these fine woodwind bloggers has been featured here repeatedly, so be sure to subscribe to their RSS feeds and/or social media streams. And get in touch to let me know who else I should be following! (You, maybe?)
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, November 2016
- Ben Britton looks at some common saxophone tone production issues.
- Flutist Deanna Mathews Kilbourne reminds us to play in tune, even alone.
- Oboist Jennet Ingle provides a peek into a “portfolio” career.
- I mentioned previously this post by clarinetist Jenny Maclay on cueing (and attempted to expand upon it). Jenny also takes a look at the A-flat clarinet.
- Cate Hummel gives advice on what order to teach new notes to beginning flutists.
- Saxophonist Steve Neff explores the question of how much the mouthpiece matters.
- I’m still enjoying Rachel Taylor Geier’s “practice blueprints” for flute repertoire. Here is Bach sonata #4.
- “Ericdano” at jazz-sax.com suggests some essential gig gear.
- Cynthia Ellis offers a brief thought on dynamics and the piccolo.