Klarinet Archive - Posting 000205.txt from 2002/10

From: "Rebecca Brennan" <rjbrennan1221@-----.com>
Subj: RE: [kl] Being forced to play bari, was Re: [kl] Rebecca
Date: Fri, 4 Oct 2002 20:01:18 -0400

Some of you been talking about how you may not be able to play the
instrument of your choice because of there being too many of that. In one
form or another, it is kind of related to that...

My band has three clarinets in marching band and the drum major is a
clarinetist, so too many is not the problem. My band is not dominated by any
one instrument because we are so small. My job since our director showed up
last january was to fill whatever void in whatever section. I am not limited
to just clarinet and sax. Actually, the second instrument I learned was the
flute, but it was just a hobby. The teacher has heard me play, and actualy
flute was an option for marching band because we have no flutes, but we do
have two piccolos. When I was a freshman, I started learning trombone for
the second jazz band, while playing vibes and percussion for the first one,
but when the director quit (along with half the band) the need for a second
jazz group was not needed seeing that the first one was nolonger overloaded.
Then there is where I learned to play sax with the pick up and play method.
Then with the new director there I found "the legendary lost oboe" (long
story) and he said I could play it. I actually had help learning it. Nothing
professional, but it got me to the point where I sounded pretty good. Then
later he was fired. At the end of last year the director removed me from the
guard (which was really a passion of mine. I was in a drum corps and
everything! After he took me off I was so heartbroken I quit the corps and
ended up at music camp in Maine!) First thing he said after taking me off
was "I need you to play mellophone" so I took one home and taught myself to
play it and never touched it in the band room, but at least I have knowledge
of the instruments and developed "brass chops."

If you are wondering about the band directors, I had four my sophomore year.
My freshman year director quit a few days into summer band. We got a new
one, who was fired at the end of October. Then we got a new director who
retired at the semester, and then we got the guy we have now, whom kicked me
out of the guard and decided to use little Becca to be the little band
slave...

Don't think I am the girl who plays everything. I only consider myself a
clarinetist and a saxophonist. I don't stink at all of these other
instruments, I can play it, just wouldn't consider myself great, but I
could make it in the band on any of these if I needed to. I may actually
play mellophone durring homecoming. There is that nice mello solo in "I
Dreamed a Dream!"

Dude! That was long! Hope you enjoyed my life story. Oh yeah, December 21st
1985 I was born......There that completes it!

-Rebecca

OH YEAH! Yes Bill, I will be sitting beside a cute tenor sax player! He may
look good, but we never really "clicked"

Pit orchestra is fun, isn't it??? I played the clarinet part with the nice
solos in "Fiddler on the Roof" I also played clarinet in "The Sound of
Music"

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