Klarinet Archive - Posting 000705.txt from 1998/02

From: garylsmith@-----.com (Gary L Smith)
Subj: Re: Asking students to double
Date: Thu, 19 Feb 1998 03:42:28 -0500

On Wed, 18 Feb 1998 11:57:35 -0600 (CST) "Edwin V. Lacy"
<el2@-----.edu> writes:
>On Tue, 17 Feb 1998, Gary L Smith wrote:
>
>> I think we could start a whole topic on directors who throw
>different
>> instruments at students, not to help them develop, but because they
>need
>> (or think they need) a (oboe/bassoon/bari sax/whatever).
>
>We have had this discussion previously, and the whole argument is
>faulty,
>because it is based on an incorrect assumption. It's not the
>_director_
>who needs complete instrumentation in their group, it is the students
>who
>need to experience the music as it was written.
[snip]

Uh, I'm not talking about the student's initial choice of instrument. I
would agree that directors have to steer students to different
instruments. I'm not even criticizing doubling per se, assuming the
student is given (some semblance of) choice and allowed to prepare.

My own band directors when I was in school were pretty good about giving
you a choice, then giving you a chance to develop. My experiences with
tenor sax were very positive, and if not for them, I might not have a lot
of the chances to work I have today.

What I object to, and I think this is what some of the others are talking
about, is the speech that goes: "Johnny, you're doing great on clarinet,
so we need you to play the oboe for next month's concert band
competition. There's lots of solos, so it'll be fun. Here's the fingering
chart." And speaking of matching a child's physique to an instrument,
just watch a 9th grader who weighs 100 lbs soaking wet getting lugged
around by a baritone sax in marching band. It happens.