Recital videos, August 2016

I performed a recital with a faculty colleague on our campus at Delta State University, and again at the University of Mississippi (“Ole Miss”). Program and videos are below.

The idea behind the first half was to play Paris Conservatory competition pieces from 1916 (100 years ago). The Büsser and Lefebvre pieces are not unknown, and the Fauré Fantaisie for flute and piano is core repertoire. The Paul Puget Solo for bassoon and piano was much harder to find, as it seems to have been out of print for some time. The University of Michigan library has it, and was willing to send their yellowed copy on interlibrary loan for a fee. (I am hoping to get it up on the IMSLP. Update: it’s now on the IMSLP.) If anybody is familiar with the piece, I would be curious to hear from you.

No special theme on the second half, just a couple of contemporary works I wanted to do. Greg Pattillo’s Three Beats for beatbox flute was a fun challenge and a crowd pleaser. (My beatboxing has a long way to go. Also: I bought the piece as a PDF through Pattillo’s website, but the site seems to have been updated and now I can’t find it to link to.) And Roberto Molinelli’s Four Pictures from New York is a charming piece for saxophonist playing soprano, alto, and tenor, performed here with piano but also available in several ensemble versions. I copied Otis Murphy‘s substantial cuts to the third movement, which make sense for the saxophone/piano texture.

Program (PDF)

Favorite blog posts, July 2016

Hand-picked high-quality woodwind-related blog posts from around the web, July 2016 edition.

Teaching multiple instruments: IDRS 2016 presentation

Lecture notes from a presentation on teaching multiple instruments, especially double reeds in a higher education setting, from the 2016 International Double Reed Society conference.

Report: 2016 International Double Reed Society conference

I had a blast at the 2016 International Double Reed Society conference, hosted by Columbus State University in Columbus, Georgia. As I have said before, the IDRS puts on an outstanding conference, maybe my favorite of the various woodwind conferences I attend. Very well organized, with lots of outstanding talent, varied events, and presences from … Read more

Favorite blog posts, March 2016

Hand-picked high-quality woodwind-related blog posts from around the web, March 2016 edition.

Favorite blog posts, February 2016

Hand-picked high-quality woodwind-related blog posts from around the web, February 2016 edition.

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.

Favorite blog posts, January 2016

Hand-picked high-quality woodwind-related blog posts from around the web, January 2016 edition.

Favorite blog posts, December 2015

Hand-picked high-quality woodwind-related blog posts from around the web, December 2015 edition.

Student-selected online woodwind pedagogy articles

To be clear, I’m a lover of libraries, and for me there’s no question that there are tremendously valuable resources there that are not available online (yet?). But it seemed like time to experiment with embracing an online approach to the assignment.