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Friday Favorites: Technical Exercises
Happy Friday! You all know I love my scales, but I also enjoy a good technique-building book! Here are some of my favorite books and exercises to help polish and develop better clarinet technique: 11 Technical Exercises Paul Jeanjean Vade-Mecum du Clarinettiste Fritz Kroepsch 416 Progressive Daily Studies for the Clarinet Périer 331 Exercises Journaliers de Mechanisme Klosé Daily Exercises and Technical Studies from…
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The Complete Guide to Scales
Longtime readers of this blog probably know by now that I’m a scale fanatic. Scales are one of my absolute favorite things to practice, and I think that they are also one of the most beneficial elements of any well-balanced practice routine. I spend a lot of time with my students explaining what scales are and why they’re so important,…
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Friday Favorites: Articulation Exercises
Happy Friday! Another week, another opportunity for me to share some of my favorite clarinet-related things! This week, I’m sharing some of my favorite articulation exercises. Developing a polished articulation style (both quality and speed) is very important for clarinetists, and here are some of my favorite books to help you in this pursuit: Reginald Kell 17 Staccato Studies (also Clarinet Staccato from…
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Friday Favorites: Scale Studies
Happy Friday! This week, I’m sharing a few of my favorite scale books. Since I’m somewhat of a scale fanatic, this was a bit difficult to narrow down! In my opinion, no practice session is complete without scale studies, and I’ve linked some of the scale books below to exercises, Boot Camps, and Digital Downloads that I’ve created as resources…
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Clarinet Care 101
Another school year is right around the corner! Whether you’re just beginning your clarinet journey or would like to review common clarinet care tips, I’ve got you covered! Welcome to Clarinet Care 101! Below, I’m covering basic clarinet care and maintenance, as well as answering some common questions. How often should I swab? I try to swab my clarinet about…
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How to achieve delicate attacks on clarinet
At first glance, the words “delicate attacks” might seem like an oxymoron (who decided to call them attacks in the first place?!). Despite the seeming contradiction, it is possible to play beautiful, delicate attacks on the clarinet across all registers. First things first – what is an attack? Simply put, attacks are the beginning of each note you play. Depending…
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Your Clarinet Summer Glow Up Guide
Happy summer! (If we’re being pedantic, it doesn’t officially start until next week, but these high temperatures could have fooled me!) If you want to use your summer break for a major musical glow up, you’ve come to the right place! If you’re unfamiliar, a glow up is a positive transformation, whether it’s physical, mental, spiritual, and now…musical! There are…
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Quick Fix Friday: Avoid Monotony During Repeated Notes
Happy Friday! Sometimes, a composer likes a note so much that they use it again…and again…and again…. These repeated note sequences can become monotonous if you’re not careful with your phrasing. Anytime you find repeated notes in your music, be sure to add variety through dynamics, pacing, articulation, or other interpretative devices to make these passages more musically compelling. Et…
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Quick Fix Friday: Your Sound Imitates Your Air
Happy Friday! This week, I wanted to share something I constantly remind my students… Your sound is a direct reflection of your air. If there are dips, bumps, or inconsistencies in your air speed, pressure, or quantity, your sound will be affected. If there is a break in the air, there will be a break in the sound. If there…
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The Musician’s Guide to Artist Residencies
Hello from Austria! If you’re subscribed to my newsletter, you know all about my Austrian adventures, including my recent and upcoming projects and performances. I’m currently in Krems an der Donau as an Artist-in-Residence Niederösterreich, where I am researching and performing the clarinet compositions of Ernst Krenek in collaboration with the Ernst Krenek Institut. I’m very thankful to have done…