Klarinet Archive - Posting 000072.txt from 2009/07

From: Margaret Thornhill <clarinetstudio@-----.com>
Subj: [kl] Re: The Orosz Technique
Date: Sun, 19 Jul 2009 10:39:29 -0400

Brad,

I just went to the Orosz website.

Playing with curved fingers that move from the hinge joint is the way I
play, so I was keenly interested. Moving the finger only from the joint
at the hand gives you a clean technique with very little wasted motion.
Many professional players play this way--it is not a new technique.

I didn't learn this from any special method, was simply shown this 40
years ago by my teacher while working my way through the two volumes of
the Eugene Gay method, one of the best for diatonic drill. You *can*
practice these finger motions away from the instrument, though once you
learn to move your fingers that way, it simply becomes their normal posture.

These books may be good, but I would take issue with the sentence here:

"The connections needed to integrate and fuse the intense learning that
takes place with my method is diminished through visual learning or
"copying"."

If I had never seen anyone play this way, I would have no idea what they
were talking about.

I'm not convinced that this is a technique for all instruments. For the
most part, woodwind hand positions are fixed: each finger has one
primary role, to cover and uncover a tone hole or lever. This is a much
simpler action than finger movements for instruments where the hand has
to travel (such as violin or piano). But I'm only responding to the
assertions on the website, not the material in the books.

Margaret Thornhill
Los Angeles

Brad Hardin wroteL
>
> I was wondering if anyone had any comments concerning The Orósz Technique
> for improving fingering?
>
> http://www.magicmusicianfingers.com/Home_Page.html
>

------------------------------------------------------------------