Just because the clarinet can play these notes there is no reason why it should. At least not when I’m playing it!
Hitting the High Notes
Category: Adult Music Education
A little Inspiration
Sometimes in the midst of the slow process of lessons, mistakes & practice it’s good to be reminded why we take up an instrument. Driving home from work & Debussy’s Rhapsody for Clarinet (& orchestra) was on the radio. Ah…Love it.
Didn’t catch who was playing it but there are plenty of versions on YouTube.
Now to practice!
Brahms – a year on
After taking a year to learn my ‘little tune by Khachaturian ‘ I said check back and see if the Brahms took as long….so now one year later…with some time out and reduced practice due to hand operation…..the beautiful first movt of the second Brahms Sonata certainly didn’t take me as long to learn but I think it may take me a lifetime to play well.
As for the Khachaturian, pleased I could still manage to get through it after the hand operation but it really needs constant practise. I may have to play this piece everyday for the rest of my life!
Sooo…
Just keep practising, just keep practising…
Carpel Tunnel – 8 Months Post Op Lament
8 months of pain in both hands…..is this actually an improvment from hands that were constantly numb?
It has been very frustrating, one of my main issues before the op was that I felt I was loosing control of he fingers, I seemed to be fumbling. Sadly that hasn’t improved, there are so many things that I find really hard to do, doing up buttons and writing is even worse than it was before the op. Gave up trying to pick a pin up off the floor, impossible. Can play Squeak (clarinet) for a maximum of 30 minutes, not sure if that is good or bad for the hands but not giving in, might be better for the neighbours!
The hands were worse 6 months ago so I guess it is improving, just soooo slowly that I don’t notice. Not the quick fix I had been hoping for. Got 12 months in my head….just give it 12 months and maybe it will be ok. – will it be the 12 month Jig or Dirge?
Clarinet Mouth – Or Embouchure vs Blowing Raspberries!
The embouchure, or mouth position, for playing clarinet doesn’t just happen. When I first started playing clarinet I found after a short while my mouth would just go slack, no way could I hold it there any longer, completely useless and impossible to play any longer. Continue reading “Clarinet Mouth – Or Embouchure vs Blowing Raspberries!”
Poco a Poco – Little by Little
Another tick at the end of a piece, well end of the movement. This is the Khachaturian trio, which I love, but looking back I can see it has taken me a year to reach this point. It really has been Poco a Poco, little by little, just keep working away and at last another milestone is reached. Really thought I had over extended myself with this one.
Khachaturian Trio, end of 1st mvt, clarinet part.
I have now started on a Sonata by Brahms, slower, beautiful and hopefully won’t take me so long to learn (come back in a year and check on that!).
End in Sight
It has taken 2 years of work but that little tick at the end of the page means I have finally reached the end of all 3 movements (8 pages) of the Weber Grand Duo Concertant.
Still not up to speed and plenty to work on but it feels so good to see that final bar.
Hard slog
Ok so I haven’t uncovered some hidden musical talent. This is about hard slog, working on something, repeating and repeating it only to have a fit of nerves in the lesson and stuff it up. However looking back I can see progress. Slow maybe but progress. I can play 3 movements of the Weber Grand Duo except for the last page….yeah well I’m not actually up to speed on the rest of it and that last page is crazy.
Khachaturian Trio just seems to get harder and harder, there were all those groups of 9 to fit into one beat and then you get groups of 10 and groups of 11 oh and lets throw in a 6 or a 4 just to keep you on your toes. Love the piece and determinded to keep plugging away at it. More hard slog but when I think how far I have come it is so worth it. I even feel I can say I play clarinet, I used to say I am learning clarinet, of course I am still learning but now I think If I can tackle pieces like these then I can say I play clarinet.
Half Speed Khachaturian
A lot of hard work on just a few small sections of the music, going over and over those triplets, working with the dreaded metronome (it never keeps in time with me properly, must be faulty). Continue reading “Half Speed Khachaturian”
A little tune by Khachaturian
A sample of the new piece I am trying to learn. I should have known that Khachaturian wouldn’t write something easy!
Those 9s mean playing 3 triplets or 9 notes in the space of one beat (I think) …er right…who’s idea was it to play this?
This may take a while!