Klarinet Archive - Posting 000552.txt from 1999/04

From: Erin Margarette Bray <ebray@-----.edu>
Subj: Re: [kl] two totally unrelated questions
Date: Mon, 12 Apr 1999 14:26:08 -0400

Hey--

Regarding performance nerves, I have the same problem. For the longest
time, I managed to use a 'mind over matter' thing that resulted in me
focusing more on not being nervous and on not shaking than on the music.
Not a good result. My teacher eventually made it part of my assignment to
research and talk to people that take a beta-blocker called Inderal. It
is a little pill for people with high blood pressure that a lot performers
use to get rid of the shakes. It works with a few small problems. It
doesn't make you tired or anything, but it does tend to make one
apathetic--that is, you know you made a mistake, but you just don't care
and you don't really care how you play. This can be fixed by adjusting
your dosage, but many of the people I talked to say that it can take the
'edge' out of a performance. You should check into it if your nerves trip
you up badly enough.

About 'Godzilla' we did that here for a Halloween concert. The
portamento--is that the gliss? I had to play it, too. It is just like
the opening to Gershwin "Rhapsody in Blue" and I do it by slowing sliding
my fingers off of the keys. Do it one at a time until you get the sound
and the idea right. Unfortuanatly, that gliss goes up to a high e-flat,
right? Try using your a-flat key (to get the pitch D) and then end on
your a key (to get the pitch e-flat) They notes come out, they may be a
little out of tune, but I don't think that you can gliss over that second
break! I don't think that Whittacre was a clarinetist!

Good luck--it's a fun piece, no?

EB

-------------------------------------------------------------------------
Unsubscribe from Klarinet, e-mail: klarinet-unsubscribe@-----.org
Subscribe to the Digest: klarinet-digest-subscribe@-----.org
Additional commands: klarinet-help@-----.org
Other problems: klarinet-owner@-----.org

   
     Copyright © Woodwind.Org, Inc. All Rights Reserved    Privacy Policy    Contact charette@woodwind.org