Klarinet Archive - Posting 000142.txt from 1995/05

From: Mike Vaccaro <MVPROD@-----.COM>
Subj: Re: Improvisation/Sal/Fred
Date: Thu, 4 May 1995 03:15:46 -0400

Sal & Fred wrote:

Sal,
Of course, these are a GIVEN, but the original question was about
basic pedagogical methods. Just listening and trying to emulate is really a
pretty inefficient way of learning, though it can be a very useful PART
of the learning process.

Fred

On Mon, 1 May 1995, Sal Lozano wrote:

> Fred......How about listening to players.....all instruments......all
> different tempos.
> Try to play along or emulate their phrasing. Then have them write it out
and
> play it or even memorize it.
> Sal Lozano

I say:

Teaching methods are important and there has been much talk about method
books etc. in the Improvization diatribe, however I agree with Sal. We have
all emulated someone even if it was just our teacher. Most of us have to
sound like someone else before we sound like ourselves. Why do so many
orchestra clarinetists sound similar? Because they are trying to fit an
ideal. The same for jazz or improvization. If we can reach an ideal many
things become more clear for us.
Mike Vaccaro