Doublereed Archive - Posting 000028.txt from 2003/08

From: "Stan Elias" <elias1@-----.net>
Subj: Re: [DR-L] Learning the Oboe
Date: Tue, 5 Aug 2003 22:52:30 -0400

Andrew,

Your experience sounds much like mine. I played clarinet and sax for more t
han 40 years before deciding I wanted to play oboe. I found an oboe in a cl
assified ad, bought a couple of books (the Barrett method and "The Art of O
boe Playing" by Sprenkle and Ledet) and three reeds (Jones, medium strength
) from my local music store, and started to teach myself. Based on my "been
there, done that" perspective, I can offer the following advice.

First, buy the best oboe you can afford. Be prepared to spend upward of $10
00 for a decent beginner/intermediate instrument, and take an experienced p
layer with you to kick the tires before you buy. Fox and Yamaha are among s
everal manufacturers of instruments worth considering. I was fortunate enou
gh (read: dumb luck) to end up with an antique manufactured by the company
that was a predecessor to Loree. It served me long and well until I could a
fford a more modern Loree.

Second, until you start making your own, find a reliable brand and source o
f reeds. For the most part, cheap reeds aren't good and good reeds aren't c
heap. However, some cheap reeds can be improved with a sharp knife and a li
ttle attention. Which leads to my third, and perhaps most important, point.

Find a good teacher. Check with the local symphony, college music departmen
ts, etc. After three years of unassisted fumbling, I am studying with the p
rincipal oboe of the local semi-pro symphony, trying to learn undocumented
techniques that will improve my playing, and to unlearn all the bad habits
I picked up along the way. In addition to showing you around your new instr
ument, your teacher will show you how to make reeds that are tailored to yo
ur own particular instrument and embouchure musculature. The double-reed em
bouchure is nothing like the loose embouchure of the lower brass and saxes,
and the fingering system is, well . . . Ogden Nash had it just about right:

"The oboe's a horn made of wood.
I'd play you a tune if I could,
But the reeds are a pain,
And the fingering's insane.
It's the ill wind that no one blows good."

Good luck, and I hope you find the experience as satisfying and rewarding a
s I have.

Stan