Taking your doubles to the next level

ByBret Pimentel

I think that as a doubler it’s easy to consider your ability level “good enough” on a secondary instrument. Check your doubles below, and ask yourself what you can do to raise the level of your playing. I’ve given just a few examples of “next level” techniques on each instrument.

  • Flute
    • Can I play up to the highest notes (4th octave C, C-sharp, and D, for example) with delicacy?
    • Can I play the lowest notes with power and confidence?
    • Can I double and triple tongue fluently and without having to think about it?
  • Oboe
    • Has my tone progressed past the “duck” phase? Is it rich, dark, and flexible? Even in the high register?
    • Am I thoroughly comfortable with the various F fingerings—right, left, and forked—and prepared to choose the right ones even while sightreading? How about E-flat fingerings?
    • Do I depend on others for reeds, or am I capable of making (or at least adjusting) my own?
  • Clarinet
    • Am I completely fluent in the pinky-finger notes? Can I make good choices about which pinky fingerings to use, and make them automatically?
    • Do I know and use good resonance fingerings for the throat tones?
    • Have I thoroughly habituated good practices for crossing the break (efficient hand position and finger motion, putting the right hand fingers down early when ascending, keeping the airstream supported and constant…)?
  • Bassoon
    • Can I make or at least adjust my own reeds?
    • How is my tenor clef reading? Okay, now how about the low notes in the tenor clef?
    • Do I not only know alternate fingerings, but know their characteristics (pitch, tone, response, slurability…)?
  • Saxophone
    • Can I successfully and smoothly navigate passages using the left hand pinky? How about the palm keys?
    • Am I fluent in the altissimo register?
    • Do I have a good grasp of jazz and “legit” styles (tone, articulation, inflection, equipment choices…)? Can I improvise convincingly in various styles (Ben Webster? Charlie Parker? John Coltrane? David Sanborn? Michael Brecker?)?
  • Folk/ethnic/period instruments
    • If called upon to do so, am I prepared to play, for example, recorder? Pennywhistle? Bamboo flute? Native American flute? Do I have at least a nodding acquaintance with the styles and performance practices associated with those instruments?

Back to the practice room for me.

Similar Posts

  • What’s in a name? What “doublers” call themselves

    ByBret Pimentel

    I’ve struggled a little with what to call myself as a player of several woodwind instruments. “Woodwind doubler” seems like the most accepted nomenclature, but “doubler” seems a little inapt for someone who plays more than two instruments (my flute teacher calls me a “five-aler”). Read More “What’s in a name? What “doublers” call themselves”

  • |

    Woodwind Doubler Census results, part 8: final comments

    ByBret Pimentel

    I decided to leave a space in the survey for general comments, and many of you took the time to remark on a variety of subjects. Many of them were directed to me personally or seemed otherwise non-public in nature, so I’m not going to list them all, but I’ll share a few and summarize the rest.

    Some of you politely made suggestions on how the survey could be better:

    • There’s a big gap between “casual dabbler” and “semi-pro”. I suggest an additional category: “serious amateur” or something like that.
    • It would be good to have a skill level between casual dabbler and music major (something along the lines of “good amateur”). As the poll currently is, it suggests that I play recorder to the same standard as sax. I would consider my recorder and flute playing better than “not at all” but my sax and clarinet playing not to be at the level of “music major”, hence they all closest to “casual dabbler”. I guess it’s too late to change the poll now, but I thought I’d offer my opinion anyway :).
    • maybe ask music arranging abilities. Small ensemble writing for different woodwinds is necessary in my working fields.
    • Not sure what your intent is with this data, but I do think that there are some fields that would be nice to have/know of (of course maybe for the next time you do this)…  For example,
      -“what do you consider your strongest/primary instrument”,
      -consider having three columns in the instruments section like:  own/play/don’t own
    • Didn’t know how to answer some of the questions because I’m still a high school student

    I think these are all good suggestions, and ones that I would probably take if I could do the survey over. (At this point I have no specific plan for future surveys, but haven’t ruled the idea out, either.) Read More “Woodwind Doubler Census results, part 8: final comments”

  • Making sense of third-octave flute fingerings

    ByBret Pimentel

    I recall as a beginning flutist (coming from background in saxophone) finding the third-octave fingerings to be a confusing, illogical jumble, but they do actually make some sense. There is an incorrect explanation for these fingerings that I hear every so often, and have seen published on a couple of flute-related blogs recently. It goes something like this: the flute’s third-octave fingerings are some kind of combination of two different first/second-octave fingerings. For example:

    ta4 + te5 = te6 ?
    1424179983 1424179997 1424180007

    Or…

    tbf4 + tf5 = tf6 ?
    1424180013 1424180018 1424180777

    If I squint my eyes just right I can sort of see how this almost makes sense fingerings-wise and overtones-wise, but ultimately this system is unnecessarily confusing and also doesn’t reflect acoustical realities.

    Here’s a better way to look at third-octave flute fingerings: they are the same as the first/second octave fingerings, with a vent opened. This is very similar to how upper registers are achieved on the reed instruments: by adding an octave or register key or releasing a whisper key to open a vent. Since the flute doesn’t have dedicated vent holes, toneholes are used.

    For some of the third octave notes, additional keys must be added or subtracted to improve pitch, tone, or response; again this is analogous to the systems used for the reed instruments. But here are the simplest examples of opening single vents for the third octave:

    te5 →  open vent → te6
    1424179997 1424183194 1424180007
    tf5 → open vent → tf6
    1424180018 1424183208 1424180777
    tfs5 → open vent → tfs6
    1424184167 1424183218 1424184173
    tg5 → open vent → tg6
    1424184151 1424183227 1424184158

    It is probably worth pointing out that having any “system” for remembering fingerings is just a crutch; for a performing musician, the only practical “system” is to thoroughly habituate them to the point that no conscious thought is required. Practice carefully and be on the alert for dubious pedagogy.

    Make your own handsome woodwind fingering diagrams with the Fingering Diagram Builder

  • The modern saxophonist: The changing career climate of the concert saxophone artist

    ByBret Pimentel

    The neglected saxophone

    Despite the saxophone’s widespread acceptance in jazz and popular music styles, its acknowledgment as a viable solo instrument in classical music has been slow. Few composers have included it in orchestral scores. Only in recent years have conservatories and university music departments begun to recognize the saxophone on a somewhat equal footing with, say, the flute, the piano, or the violin.

    Perhaps this neglect was a lingering byproduct of the instrument’s chronology. After all, by the time of its invention by Adolphe Sax in the 1840’s, the instrumentation of the modern orchestra was already becoming somewhat standardized. Maybe the inattention had something to do with the saxophone’s longstanding reputation as a “jazzy horn” and association with burlesque1. Or maybe the upsurge in amateur interest since the 1920’s had spawned too many inferior saxophonists for anyone to take the instrument seriously2. Read More “The modern saxophonist: The changing career climate of the concert saxophone artist”

  • Pedagogy appropriate to students’ level

    ByBret Pimentel

    I remember as a young college student attending a masterclass by a world-class musician. He was scornful of students spending a lot of time in practice rooms playing scales. He urged us instead to get outside and watch a sunset, and then “play the sunset.”

    Advice like that has its place. But I was doing exactly as my teacher assigned: spending a lot of time in practice rooms playing scales. My teacher assigned that because it was what I needed at that stage in my development. I wouldn’t have had much success trying to “play the sunset” because I hadn’t yet learned the technique I needed.

    I have my university woodwind methods students do an assignment evaluating pedagogical articles. They use a few criteria, including appropriateness for teaching beginners. The articles’ authors don’t always make that clear. In fact, I suspect many of the authors would resist the idea that their advice is level-specific. “Oh, no, my ideas apply to all students.”

    I understand the appeal of that viewpoint, that good woodwind pedagogy is made of unassailable truths. But here’s a counterexample. With beginner and intermediate students, I teach that voicing is stable; you learn the “correct” voicing and then stick with it. But with more advanced students I teach that voicing is a tool to adjust tuning, response, and tone. Their technique, ear for pitch, and expressive requirements have reached a higher level, and they are ready. (I’ve addressed this two-phase approach to voicing previously.)

    Masterclasses like the one I attended are often taught by very high-level performers. Their own teaching studios are filled with advanced, high-achieving graduate students. With those students, it may be productive to discuss heady philosophical or creative ideas. But the less-elite students really do need to hit a practice room and learn their scales. For them, high-level advice is pointless, frustrating, and condescending.

    Consider carefully the needs of those you teach. When necessary, be clear that your teaching may be geared toward students at a particular level.

  • Woodwind Doubler Census 2021 results, part 5 (final): self-identification

    ByBret Pimentel

    Thanks to all who participated in my 2021 woodwind doubling survey, and to those who helped spread the word. I’ve released the results in installments, so be sure to check out the rest.

    I got 284 responses, an improvement over 2011’s 187. The numbers for each of these questions don’t necessarily add up to exactly that number, since not everybody responded to every question.

    In the final section of the survey, I gave respondents the option to identify and tell me a little about themselves, including their names, locations, affiliations, websites, and other comments. I’m not sharing personally-identifiable information here, but I’ll respond in a general way to each question.

    What is your name?

    Almost 180 of you identified yourselves by name. It was lots of fun to scroll through see musicians I know and have worked with, who I have connected with online, and even some of my heroes and role models. And it was also very cool to see lots of names I didn’t know (yet). If you’re out there and would like to connect, I hope you will feel free to reach out.

    Where do you live?

    I’m sharing these sorted alphabetically and lightly edited.

    19047
    Ada, OK
    Ada, Oklahoma
    Archer City, Texas
    Arizona
    around Boston
    Around Raleigh, North Carolina
    Asheville, NC
    Ashland, KY
    Atlanta
    Auburn, ME
    Austin TX
    Austin, TX
    Australia
    Baltimore, MD area
    Bangkok, Thailand
    Berlin, CT
    Birmingham, England (studying)
    Bolivar, MO
    Boston
    Boston
    Boston-area
    California
    Cambridge, UK
    Canada
    Centra Michigan
    Charlotte, NC
    Chatham, Ontario, Canada
    Chicago
    Chicago Suburbs
    Chicago suburbs
    cincinnati
    Cleveland OH
    Coburg, OR (but still gig in San Jose, CA, my previous residence)
    Colorado
    Comerío, Puerto Rico.
    Connecticut
    Conroe, TX (40 miles north of downtown Houston)
    Coopersburg, PA
    Corvallis
    Covington, LA
    Currently in Tampere, Finland; usually SoCal/ SF Bay Area
    Dallas – Fort Worth Area
    Dallas, Texas
    Dallas, TX
    Dallas/Fort Worth region
    Darien, IL
    DC area
    Durant, Oklahoma / Las Vegas, Nevada
    East Bay of SF Bay Area
    East Lansing, MI
    Eastern Mass
    Eastern North Carolina
    Edmonton, Alberta, Canada
    Eugene, Oregon
    Fargo ND
    Fargo, ND
    Finger Lakes region of New York
    Florida
    Fort Worth, Texas
    Fresno, Ca.
    Germany
    Germany
    Grand Rapids, Michigan
    Greater Vancouver, BC, Canada
    Greensboro, NC
    Greensboro, NC
    Greensboro, North Carolina
    Hamels, Braughing, Hertfordshire, England
    Hampton Roas, VA
    Harrisburg, PA
    Hong Kong
    Honolulu, Hawaii
    Houston
    Houston TX
    Houston, TX
    Ihio
    Indiana
    Indianapolis
    Indianapolis
    iowa
    Iowa USA
    Jersey City
    Kanagawa, Japan* (originally from Maine)
    Kansas
    Kansas
    Kansas City metro area
    Lancaster area PA
    Lancaster, CA
    Las Vegas
    Las Vegas
    Little Rock, Arkansas
    Liverpool, NY
    London
    London
    London and Cape Town
    Long Beach, CA USA
    Los Angeles
    Los Angeles
    Los Angeles/Orange County, CA
    Madeira Beach, FL
    Manhattan and Connecticut
    Melbourne, Australia
    Melbourne, Australia
    Melbourne, Australia
    Memphis
    Memphis
    Memphis, TN
    Memphis,TN USA
    Metro Atlanta
    Miami, FL
    Miami, Florida
    Michigan
    Middleton Massachusetts
    Midwest U.S.
    Milwaukee
    Milwaukee
    Milwaukee
    Milwaukee WI
    Minneapolis
    Minneapolis, MN
    Minnesota
    Mississippi
    Mississippi
    Montgomery, AL
    Murfreesboro
    Myrtle Beach, SC
    Nashville, TN
    Nashville, TN
    Nashville, TN
    Near Eugene Oregon
    Nebraska
    Nevada
    New England, USA
    New England, USA
    New Jersey
    New Jersey
    New Jersey, US
    New Orleans
    New York
    New York City
    New York City
    New York City
    New York City Metro area
    New York, Montreal, and Florida
    New York, NY
    North Kingstown, RI
    North Texas
    Northeast Ohio/Western PA
    Northeast Tennessee
    Northeast U.S.
    Northeastern and Central Pennsylvania
    Northern California
    Norway
    NY
    NY area
    NYC
    NYC
    NYC
    Ocean Reef, Perth, Western Australia
    Ohio
    Ohio
    Oklahoma City
    Oregon
    Oregon
    Orlando, Florida
    Oxford, UK
    Pennsylvania
    Perth
    Perth, Western Australia
    Pickering, ON Canada
    Piedmont Triad Area of North Carolina
    Pittsburgh
    Pittsburgh, Pa.
    Preston, UK
    Queensland, Australia
    Reno, NV
    San Antonio
    San Antonio TX
    San Antonio, TX
    San Francisco
    San Fransisco Bay Area
    San Jose
    San Jose, CA
    San Jose, CA
    San Jose, CA
    San Jose, CA
    San Jose, CA
    San W
    Saskatchewan, Canada
    Scenic Martin, TN
    Scotland
    Scotland
    Seattle, WA
    SF Bay Area
    SF Bay Area
    SF Bay Area
    SF Bay Area
    SF South Bay Area
    SF South Bay Area
    Singapore
    SLC Utah
    South Eastern Wisconsin, USA
    southern Virginia
    Springfield, MO
    St Andrews
    St Paul/Minneapolis
    St. Louis area
    St. Louis, MO
    State College PA
    Sussex, Wi
    Tampa Florida
    Teaneck, NJ
    Tennessee
    Toronto
    Toronto
    Toronto CA -> Greensboro,NC
    Toronto, Canada
    Troy, AL
    Trumansburg, NY
    UK
    Urbana, IL (& Springfield, IL)
    Va Bch, VA.
    Washington, DC
    Washington, DC
    Washington, DC metropolitan area
    Wellington, New Zealand
    Will be moving to Denton, Texas
    Yorkton, Saskatchewan, Canada

    What is your main gig, performing group, teaching institution, etc.?

    I have edited a number of these (the asterisks are mine) in cases where, based on my best judgment, I felt strangers might be able to identify you through web searches.

    *** Big Band
    *** College/*** Community College/*** College/private studio/*** Festival Orchestra/*** Philharmonic
    *** County Schools, Freelance musician
    *** Ensemble, Broadway shows, recordings, *** College of Performing Arts
    *** Episcopal School
    *** High School (band director)
    *** Jazz Band
    *** London West End
    *** Middle School (Teacher)
    *** Musician
    *** Quartet, Goodspeed Musicals, Playhouse on Park, etc.
    *** Symphony Orchestra (Assistant Principal Bassoon/ Contrabassoon and much of the Saxophone work), teach at the University of ***, lots of studio recording sessions.
    *** Symphony Orchestra, Bassoon
    *** University graduate teaching assistant
    *** Videogame Symphony
    *** Winds, Ballet *** Orchestra
    ***Winds, ***, ***
    2nd Alto Sax, US Navy Band *** Jazz Ensemble
    6-12 band director
    A school big band
    ABRSM
    Air Force, formerly with a regional band, but now assigned a non-music job
    Alabama State University
    Band Director – High School
    Band instrument repair
    Bar gigs w/ a combo
    Before the pandemic I was regularly doing musical theatre work 3/4s of the year and also was doing a fair bit of big band playing as well. The big band and various offshoots of it play pre 1940s swing music and some smaller “Dixie” stuff so there’s a lot for me to do on clarinet. I also teach privately at a school system and a music store and was leading an after school ensemble and doing sectional work with the other bands at the school system. Those ended up being fairly evenly split, and then I would pick up various odd work at studio sessions or local bar gigs
    Big band jazz
    Broadway
    Broadway and Lincoln Center
    Broadway pits
    Certified bad*** (jk, picking up jobs when I can/doing musicals)
    Church and Various community bands
    Church Music Director
    Church of ***, Music Director and keyboardist
    Coastal Carolina University
    Community band/ musicals
    Community bands
    Community Bands – 4 of them.
    community orchestra
    Community theater
    Community wind ensemble
    Cruise ship musician (saxes, flute, piccolo, clarinet)
    Currently all virtual – mostly with the Royal Canadian Naval Reserves at ***.
    Currently RSO/VVGO/various guest player roles at Chinese orchestras in Singapore
    Currently teaching orchestra.
    DMA student at the University of ***
    Elementary Music Teacher
    Everywhere 😂
    Fargo Moorhead Community Theatre
    Free-lance musician
    Freelance
    Freelance
    Freelance musician around the west end and London
    Freelance teaching and performing
    Freelance woodwind specialist, director of local volunteer big band (Ensemble Swing Time), Singer
    Freelancer / university adjunct
    Going to the *** College of Music and Drama for Oboe Performance (with a touch of Woodwind doubling) this september
    High School
    High School Teacher
    Home based teacher
    I am a high school student at *** High School
    I attend Brandon University
    I play the flute family for the *** Symphony Orchestra
    I primarily teach private students.
    I work at *** full-time during the days, and sub regularly on Broadway on nights and weekends (under normal circumstances)
    I’m in high school so this doesn’t apply
    Instrument repair
    Instrument Repair at ***
    Jazz Big Band
    Just freelance
    Local high school and regional theater
    Local theatre groups
    Mainly in undergrad jazz band and concert band
    Mars Hill University
    Mid-*** Symphony, *** Jazz Band
    Middle school music teacher, play in local symphony and a collegiate wind orchestra
    Military Band
    Military musician and private teacher
    Missouri State University
    Music bachelors student
    Music education undergrad
    Music teacher/Teaching artist
    Musical instrument repair/orchestral oboe.
    Musical theater, church
    My band, The ***
    My online business as a content creator and educator
    National or international tours.
    No main gig during The pandemic.
    No main gig.
    None, teach at *** College, produce concerts at ***, run the *** Saxophone Quartet,
    North Carolina State University
    Nowadays it’s mostly University ensembles in Cambridge
    Performing
    Performing
    pit orchestra
    playing in musical orchestras/ bands
    Playing in musical theater pits
    Playing on Broadway
    Playing: Civic Theater and the *** Jazz Orchestra. Clarinet teacher for local school district.
    Private instructor, various big bands, west coast style combo and various pits when they come up
    private lessons at *** Music
    Private lessons teaching
    Private Studio
    Private Studio
    Private teacher & reed maker out of my home
    Private teaching studio
    Private woodwind teacher & freelance musician
    Prof. of Music, The University of ***
    Professional and community theatre pits. Too many to list.
    Professional orchestra librarian
    Professor at *** University
    Professor at NDSU
    Put work
    Recent college graduate, premed, member of *** (funk group), and jazz musician/woodwind instrumentalist
    Regional big band & GB
    Regional Broadway caliber theater productions and local hire for national tours.
    Regional theater, private lessons
    Retired
    Rockland County Concert Band
    Royal Birmingham Conservatoire (studying)
    Sam Houston state
    Saxophone with ***
    School band
    Schriener University
    Self-employed
    senior in college, about to student teach
    simpson college
    Six Flags
    Small School Band Director
    Software Engineer
    solo jazz performer
    Southwest *** Community College
    Stockton CA
    Student
    Student
    Student right now
    Substitute teacher specializing in music
    Teach at ***. Play gigs w/my jazz combo.
    Teacher (Elementary)
    Teaching and free lancing.
    Teaching and instrument repair
    Teaching at a school(still a uni student)
    Teaching Bassoon Lessons
    Teaching middle school band
    teaching private lessons
    Teaching the reed studio at *** University.
    Teaching: *** Music (lesson studio and music store) | Playing: *** (amusement park) Dixieland Band
    The *** Quartet (baritone chair), freelancer/soloist, Orchestra of ***
    Theater
    Theater Musician
    Theatre
    There are several
    Touring Musician (Broadway shows)
    UNC Charlotte
    Univ. of ***, *** Technical College
    University adjunct professor, Broadway touring shows (local hire) and local theater company.
    University as a student
    University New Music Ensemble
    University of *** *** Society (the musical theatre society)
    University of Nevada, Reno
    University of North Carolina School of the Arts
    University of Oregon
    University of Texas at San Antonio/private lessons (self employed)
    University Professor an conductor
    University student with some private teaching and freelancing
    US Army Musician
    US Navy Pacific Fleet Band
    Varies
    VVGO, RSO, UFB – virtual ensembles.
    WAAPA – Western Australian Academy of Performing Arts
    Weddings
    Western Australian Academy of Performing Arts
    Will be attending UNT
    Youngstown State University

    What is your website address?

    Lots of you shared websites. In cases where I could locate a relevant and reasonably-fresh RSS feed, I’ve added them to my feed reader, which also puts them on my public blogroll.

    Any other comments you would like to share?

    Some of you took this opportunity to share some general thoughts about woodwind doubling, to expand upon your biographical details or musical experiences, or to offer critique/commentary on the survey itself. Many of you were also kind enough to express appreciation for the survey, my blog, and other resources on my website. It was deeply gratifying and also super weird to hear from a few of you that you drew inspiration from my website as kids and are now working musicians, graduate students, etc. Anyway, thanks for taking the time to say hello or share a few thoughts.

    In conclusion, thanks once again to all for your participation, readership, and friendship. It was great to hear from so many of you, and I hope to do it again in 2031.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Comments that take a negative or confrontational tone are subject to email and name verification before being approved. In other words: no anonymous trolls allowed—take responsibility for your words.

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.