- Bassoonist Anna Norris suggests showing up for auditions.
- Michael Shults switches between jazz and classical saxophone.
- David Freeman transcribes recorder parts for Stairway to Heaven (but plays them on an electric keyboard…).
- Michael Lowenstern addresses a bass clarinet reed question.
- Flutist Vanessa Breault Mulvey discusses squeezing’s detrimental effect on flute playing [update: link dead].
- Saxophonist Bill Plake discusses tone imagination.
- Flutist Jolene Harju shares ideas for getting the most out of your lessons. I also liked her “Fundamentals Workout Planner.”
- Jennet Ingle learns something about disappointing performances.
- Saxophonist Jay Brandford shares an Eric Dolphy anecdote about dedication to detail in practicing.
- Matt Stohrer shares his procedure for “setting up” a new saxophone. This is sort of a commercial post, but instructive about what a new instrument might need to play to its best potential.
- Flutist Jennifer Cluff explains anchor tonguing.
Woodwinds: Saxophone
Favorite blog posts, March 2017
Hand-picked high-quality woodwind-related blog posts from around the web, March 2017 edition.
Review: D’Addario Select Jazz tenor saxophone mouthpieces
I’ve already done thorough reviews of the D’Addario clarinet mouthpieces (twice) and alto saxophone jazz mouthpieces, both of which immediately replaced the competing Vandoren products I was previously using. So, naturally I’ve been very anxious for the release of the hard rubber tenor saxophone jazz mouthpiece, and I got my hands on some samples earlier … Read more
Review: “So You Want to Play in Shows…?” by Paul Saunders
I got a review copy of So You Want to Play in Shows…?, a new woodwind doubling etude book. The author, Paul Saunders, is a woodwind player in London’s West End. The book includes seven studies for doubler playing flute, clarinet, and alto saxophone. It also includes a piano accompaniment book, with piano part recordings available … Read more
Favorite blog posts, January 2017
Hand-picked high-quality woodwind-related blog posts from around the web, January 2017 edition.
Favorite blog posts, December 2016
Hand-picked high-quality woodwind-related blog posts from around the web, December 2016 edition.
Favorite blog posts, November 2016
Hand-picked high-quality woodwind-related blog posts from around the web, November 2016 edition.
Student-selected online woodwind pedagogy articles, 2016 edition
What I want my class to get from the assignment is a sense of how to sift through the information (“information”) available online, taking into account the author’s credentials or sources, a common-sense evaluation of ideas, and applicability to a particular teaching situation. Be careful out there.
Woodwinds and “altissimo” registers
I recently had a saxophone student perform a repertoire piece with some altissimo technique in it, and a non-woodwind-playing musician asked me afterward about the instrument’s extended range. This led to further questions about “altissimo” on other instruments. The answers are a little complicated, but here is some information: The term “altissimo” suggests an extreme high … Read more
Favorite blog posts, October 2016
Hand-picked high-quality woodwind-related blog posts from around the web, October 2016 edition.