Klarinet Archive - Posting 000295.txt from 2003/03
From: "Christy Erickson" <perickso@-----.net>
Subj: RE: [kl] The amateur's dilemma
Date: Fri, 7 Mar 2003 00:45:22 -0500
George, I'll have to agree and ensemble playing has always been my =
favorite
thing to do. It's not always easy to assemble a group (especially where =
I
live) but we managed to form a woodwind quintet here and we play for
weddings, events in town, and this Sunday we're doing a recital at a =
local
church. As far as taking lessons, I would have to travel 40 miles to do =
it
but I would love to do this in the future (Homeschooling and teaching
privately slows me down a little here). I also think that groups like =
this
are wonderful resources for those of us living so far from teachers, as =
well
as the internet. I think it's great that there are so many young people
participating in this group. Growing up in a small town, I didn't have =
a
clarinet teacher. I ended up studying with a flute player at a local
college, since there weren't any clarinet teachers around. LOL! I =
never
had anyone to teach me about reeds (I used Mitchell Lurie no. 5's back =
then
and sometimes they were too soft so I'd use a finger nail clipper to =
clip
them-LOL) I think I had a Selmer HS ** mouthpiece then and had a Selmer
Signet clarinet. With no internet connections like we have today and no
real clarinet player to teach me anything I taught myself what I could =
and
learned some things during 1 week music camps in the summer. I remember =
the
clarinet teacher there using Comet to clean some of the kids reeds-guess =
the
supplies we came to music camp with weren't so good.
I was always so extremely nervous about performing but got angry =
enough
with myself to practice the Mozart clarinet concerto nearly to death (my
own) and played it from memory in a competition and I won. I then =
decided
to go into social work and wished I had stuck with my music early on.
However I did put that new Buffet R-13 that I bought down during my
sophomore year in college and didn't pick it back up again until 15 =
years
later when I went back to school to take music classes. I play well =
enough
to teach a few clarinet students (they don't want to drive 40 miles to =
the
next town either but if they become too advanced for me that's what I
recommend they do). I enjoy passing on the information I didn't have
available to me when I was a kid. I play with the local civic band, the
symphony orchestra, the quintet, in church and anywhere else the =
opportunity
presents itself, which is sometimes in unusual places. I call myself a
professional player which here means I get paid about $75 a year for =
playing
with the civic band and of course weddings involve pay but everything =
else
is voluntary and I love it nonetheless.
Christy Erickson
-----Original Message-----
From: George Lin [mailto:george_s_lin@-----.com]=20
Subject: Re: [kl] The amateur's dilemma
Hi,
I may have missed the original thread, but I agree
with Diane's words. Playing music as an ensemble,
IMHO, is better than playing music alone. For those
who are not professional musicians, community bands or
orchestras for that matter, offer a venue for musical
enrichment. If you are fortunate to play with a group
of talented musicians and hopefully "good" people to
work with, it is even better. If you have a mix of
good and not so good musicians, it'll be a bit of
struggle in patience, but still I would say it is
better than being a singular musician.
Taking lessons, in my opinion, gives you more insight
and progress towards being a better musician at your
instrument than attending band rehearsals. You get
more one on one with a teacher where a band director
just doesn't have the time to do it. Also, not all
band directors are knowledgeable and have the
experience on the clarinet as a fine teacher would.=20
Plus, not all the band literature music is challenging
and motivating for you to progress. I'm taking
lessons now, and can say from my experience, it has
been worthwhile.
George Lin
Bb Clarinet - Kings Park Concert Band: Springield,VA
Bass Clarinet - Alexandria Citizens Band: Alexandria,
VA
=20
--- Diane Karius <Dkarius@-----.edu> wrote:
> I'll add another reason for the community band -
> very often, there's at
> least one person there who is playing in other
> groups and can point you
> in those directions. I found out about an
> audition-only group (mix of
> professional and "accomplished amateur") through
> some friends of mine in
> another community band. The audition-only group is
> one of the most
> musically rewarding I've ever played in (and far
> better a group than I
> ever imagined I'd be able to play with). =20
>=20
> Another suggestion (should you be so crazy): Start
> taking lessons
> again. It's another connection in. =20
>=20
> Diane K. =20
>=20
> Diane R. Karius, Ph.D.
> Associate Professor of Physiology=20
> University of Health Sciences
> 1750 Independence Ave.=20
> Kansas City, MO 64106
> (816)-283-2219
> dkarius@-----.edu
> http://courses.uhs.edu/physio/index.htm
>=20
> >>> dleigh@-----.org 03/06/03 03:04PM >>>
> On 3/6/03 3:47 PM, "Trish Mendenhall"
> <trishm@-----.com> wrote:
>=20
> > First of all, ditch the notion that all community
> bands are "like
> going back
> > to high school". There are some pretty good
> community bands out
> there, and
> > they're good because good musicians chose to get
> involved. The band
> is only
> > as good as the group wants and strives to be.
>=20
> Hey, some high school bands are very good, and so
> are some community
> bands.
> I wasn't questioning the quality. It's just that
> our local community
> band
> practices at a local high school, and I think that
> the high school
> band
> director also conducts the community band.=20
> Flashback!! LOL
>=20
> > Other opportunities:
> > Musical theater! If you're flexible, enjoy
> playing a variety of
> styles at
> > the drop of a hat, and even better, if you double
> on other woodwinds,
> there
> > is probably at least one community theater in your
> area who could use
> you,
> > maybe even several shows a year. Some are purely
> volunteer, some
> will pay
> > expenses, and some will provide some sort of small
> honorarium. If
> musicians
> > are scarce in your area, it's possible the
> orchestra even gets paid a
> bit
> > extra :)
> >
> > Community Colleges - a number of these have bands
> that are open to
> skilled
> > non-students. You usually have to pay a usage fee
> of some sort, but
> it's
> > usually pretty reasonable. In general, the caliber
> of musicians is
> pretty
> > decent - often you're filling out a band that
> otherwise consists of
> cc
> > students, some of whom are intending to go on in
> music at the
> university
> > level. It's certainly worth checking into.
>=20
> Hey, those are excellent ideas! Thanks.
>=20
>=20
>
---------------------------------------------------------------------
> klarinet-unsubscribe@-----.org=20
> or klarinet-digest-unsubscribe@-----.org if you
> get the digest.
> klarinet-help@-----.org=20
> For help: send an email to
> klarinet-owner@-----.org=20
> http://www.clarinet.org/=20
>=20
>=20
>
---------------------------------------------------------------------
> klarinet-unsubscribe@-----.org
> or klarinet-digest-unsubscribe@-----.org if you
> get the digest.
> klarinet-help@-----.org
> For help: send an email to
> klarinet-owner@-----.org
> http://www.clarinet.org/
>=20
Do you Yahoo!?
Yahoo! Tax Center - forms, calculators, tips, more
http://taxes.yahoo.com/
---------------------------------------------------------------------
---------------------------------------------------------------------
