Klarinet Archive - Posting 000084.txt from 2002/12

From: "Roger Benson" <rbenson@-----.net>
Subj: RE: [kl] Benefit of taking time off
Date: Thu, 5 Dec 2002 07:48:19 -0500

Try taking off 40 years! Quit in 1961 and started again last year
playing is terrible but having a ball playing with my 2 daughters in
a church symphony...I don't come anywhere close to any of you folks,
but you know what...I don't care. I am doing the best I can and
trying to improve, and loving it...I even bought a Buffet R13. The
R13 is okay but not sure I would do it again. It's a lot more
instrument than I will ever use...it's just sooo nicely made I enjoy
that.

-----Original Message-----
From: Donna Higgins [mailto:Donna@-----.com]
Subject: Re: [kl] Benefit of taking time off

Wayne P Hill wrote:

> I found myself forced to take some time off for medical reasons
back in
> march. Since the problems I had forced me to give up a career I
found it
> far too painful emotionally to play at all up until very recently.
I would
> never recommend taking as long a break as I did (9months plus)

Similar experience here, although my layoff was not total, and was
caused by
depression over a breakup and not by medical problems.

I didn't play at all from last March until about two months ago,
except for
showing up at rehearsals and concerts an average of once or twice a
week
(community orchestra/band stuff, much of which I'd played before so
I already
knew the music). But now that I'm starting to practice more, I'm
noticing
that my sight-reading is better than it's ever been, and my
technique has
improved.

On the down side, my embouchure is totally shot and my tone quality
is
suffering. Back to daily long tones for me......

- Donna

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