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Buying Your Child’s First Clarinet: A Guide for New Band Parents
Congratulations! Your child has decided to join a school or community band program and has chosen to play the clarinet! Clarinets are obviously the best instrument (although I am a little biased), but it can be overwhelming to purchase a clarinet if you are a first-time band parent. With reeds, mouthpieces, ligatures, mouthpiece caps, swabs, and cork grease, the clarinet has more than its fair share of equipment, which is why I’m here to help. Your main concern is probably the cost of a clarinet, which can range anywhere from a few hundred to a few thousand dollars. Band is an investment, and your goal is to find the best…
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Quick Fix Friday: Taking Good Breaths
As wind instrumentalists, our most important tool is our air. I personally believe that air can solve about 90% of the problems we encounter on the clarinet (Note not speaking? More air. Can’t play high notes? Faster air.) Since this is a quick fix Friday post (key word being quick), I won’t go into great detail about the anatomical mechanics of taking a proper breath, but instead wish to address a common issue I see among my students: breathing from the nose or dropping the jaw to take a breath. The most efficient way to take a breath when playing clarinet is through the corners of the mouth. This optimizes…
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I Got (Better) Rhythm
Let me begin this post with a potentially controversial statement: rhythm is the most important element of your musical foundation. Hear me out – other musical concepts such as tone, interpretation, and repertoire selection are very subjective and abstract. Even seemingly concrete aspects of pedagogy (embouchure, articulation, fingerings, posture) have fiercely divided and loyal devotees. Don’t believe me? What syllable should be used for articulation? Dah? Dee? Tah? Tee? Tu? Your answer depends on your musical upbringing and a myriad of other factors. The one unifying element of music is rhythm. Rhythm is the universal equalizer – musicians and non-musicians alike are capable of keeping a steady beat and recognizing…
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The Complete Guide to Clarinet Tuning
As if playing clarinet wasn’t already difficult enough (reeds, breathing, coordinating both hands) we also have to worry about tuning. Tuning (also known as intonation) is more than just aiming for the green light on the tuner. Tuning is a complex science with different variables specific to each instrument. The most frustrating part? You must constantly listen and make adjustments – tuning isn’t something you can do on auto-pilot. Let’s start with the basics. What is tuning? Tuning is the adjustment of musical pitches to match a reference. The reference can be a variety of things, including frequency level (A=440 Hz in the United States), or other musicians with whom…
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Wanderlust-Inspired Compositions
One of the unexpected effects of moving to Paris has been my increasing sense of wanderlust, or the desire to travel and explore new places. A quick search on Pinterest or Instagram will reveal that I’m not alone – it’s human nature to dream of faraway places. Visiting other cities, countries, and continents expands our cultural appreciation and knowledge of the world. New environments force our brains to think differently than usual, often resulting in surges of creativity. Wanderlust (whether fulfilled or not) has resulted in some magnificent pieces of classical music throughout history. Listen to these pieces and take a journey around the world without even leaving your home! Ralph…
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A Clarinetist’s Guide to Paris
When most people think of Paris, images of the Eiffel Tower, Louvre, and other famous monuments come to mind. These are all must-sees for any tourist, but I’ve collected a few places clarinetists shouldn’t miss. So, if you’re a clarinetist and planning on visiting Paris in the future, here are my recommendations of places to see and things to do: Instrument Manufacturers, Repairs & Accessories Vandoren Paris: Not only is 56 Rue Lepic the culmination of 110 years of quality clarinet and saxophone accessories, but Vandoren’s Paris headquarters houses an impressive collection of clarinet sheet music, recordings, and books. You can also try any piece of Vandoren equipment in one…
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7 Deadly Clarinet Sins
Gluttony: Thou shalt not partake in too much of one composer, instead exploring the vast landscape which clarinet repertoire has to offer. Pride: If thou believes that he or she is without fault, let them be reminded of the Nielsen, Francaix, Tomasi, and Corigliano concerti. Let them also be reminded that even the greatest clarinetist can be humbled by a bad reed. Pride (and a bad reed) goeth before a fall. Greed: Thou shalt not hoard and covet thy equipment and accessories. Only purchase what is necessary and refrain from debates on online clarinet forums. Lust: Thou shalt not lust after the success, equipment, career, or performances of another clarinetist.…
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My First Year in Paris in 10 Photos
Here’s the part where I tell everyone how quickly the time has flown during my first year in Paris – an overused cliché, but true nonetheless. After a whirlwind year, things are finally slowing down enough for me to breathe and get caught up on some much-needed blog posts and updates. Instead of a long-winded account of my year, I thought it would be better to choose 10 meaningful photos from this past year and say a little about each one. (Disclaimer: Some photos are from my travels and aren’t technically in Paris.) I would be remiss to not include a photo of Philippe Cuper, who is the main reason I moved…
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Musical Advice in 140 Characters or Less
With the rise of Twitter, there is a new-found expectation of delivering information in a short and concise method – a tweet. 140 characters or less, to be specific. Twitter is a great platform to edit your thoughts and present them as succinctly as possible to the public. Although not ideal for music education, there are certain doctrines which can be conveyed in the character count of a tweet. Here are some of mine: More air, less fingers (specific to instrumentalists) Phrase horizontally, not vertically Be present when you practice Match your tone when you tongue to your tone when you slur Always play with a beautiful sound Practice your scales!…
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Lies My Band Director Told Me
In honor of Teacher Appreciation Week, this article is for some of the hardest-working teachers out there – music teachers! Thank you for enduring all the squeaks, scratchy bowings, loud trumpets, and forgotten mutes! “One more time!” “You would make a great bassoonist/alto clarinetist/other auxiliary instrumentalist nobody else wants to play!” “Rehearsal will only be two hours!” “Just because you’re in band doesn’t make you a band geek!” “Band camp is really fun!” “It’s not that fast!” “More piccolo!” “We won’t practice outside if it rains.” If you are a music teacher, how many of these have you said (or what other small fibs do you tell your students)?