Recently a reader sent in a question about how to deal with fingers that don’t want to move at the same time. I thought it was a really helpful question to ask because it’s something that every clarinetist regardless of age or ability struggles with. I’ll post the question below (edited to remove some details) and [...]
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Just today I was teaching a student and the issue of how to make an embouchure came up. He and I have been working on air speed for quite a while and it was time to move to the next step. So, we did two experiments to find out if his embouchure was really working well [...] What does it mean to be in tune? That seems pretty obvious right? Just get out your tuner and play a note. If your not flat or sharp then you’re in tune. Easy. Done. But perhaps that’s not all there is to it. Maybe you’d like to play with an ensemble or even just one other [...] I’ve recently finished this book by Neal Stephenson. If you don’t know his work, it typically involves Science and Fiction but not always science-fiction. How’s that for clear. Anyway, this particular book deals with topics like geometry quite a bit and I’ve found myself thinking about the clarinet at the same time and so, here we are. Economy [...] As I mentioned before, I’m working on videos of Ron Caravan’s Polychromatic Diversions for Clarinet which I think make a solid introduction to contemporary clarinet techniques. So, here’s the second video in the series – the etude 2. Digital Etchings. As you might imagine this etude places continued emphasis on micro-tonal and timbral fingerings. However, these [...] For people who want to try some contemporary music, it can be a little daunting to figure out a place to start. After all the notation, instructions, and techniques can all be unfamiliar and difficult to understand. Recently I pulled out a copy of Ron Caravan’s Polychromatic Diversions for Clarinet. Despite the slightly strange sounding name, [...] As promised here’s a thought on voicing that I’ve had for a few weeks now. For those who aren’t familiar with the concept, clarinetists use the term voicing to describe the way in which the embouchure and tongue affect tone production. Today I just want to focus on the tongue. The reason is [...] Here’s a video that I made and posted to YouTube about exercises for getting a little more control over your pinkies. I’ve found that people sometimes have problems “finding” the right place to put their pinkies or they can’t remember which key plays which note. Sometimes it also helps to over exaggerate the motion of the [...] I know that I haven’t posted anything in a little while, but I have exciting news. I just ordered the first proof of my book from Staples. For now I’m calling it “Four Extended Techniques for Clarinet: A Practical Guide”. My goal in writing it is to demystify some of the extended techniques most commonly used [...] Do you ever have the feeling that your embouchure is just falling apart while you play? I’ve had that problem on more occasions than I care to admit. However there is something you can do to help yourself out a little. Give your embouchure a break. Now I don’t mean take breaks during your practicing. That’s [...] |
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Copyright © 2010 Adam J Berkowitz – Clarinetist - All Rights Reserved |
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