 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: Stephanie H.
Date: 2000-07-23 01:35
Hey everybody! I just had a question pop into my head. Is there some kind of thing (course, test,...) here in the States that can rate how well you play, besides people telling you? Cuz I've heard people tell me I'm good, or pretty good, but I really don't believe them. I just want to see for myself. Thanx!
Stephanie
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Author: Stephen
Date: 2000-07-23 02:04
You know you are a great clarinet player. So quit this charade. trust in yourself
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Author: William
Date: 2000-07-23 22:42
Just try to enjoy playing your music. The more evident your own pleasure and commitment to your art, the more others will enjoy what you are doing. No one can please everybody and no clarinetist or any other artist can every lay claim to the title, WORLDS BEST. Many of the most talented clarinetists have failed more auditions than they have won because of differences is musical tastes and expectations. Please yourself, and above all, enjoy. And don't forget to play in tune. :>) Good luck.
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Author: Ginny
Date: 2000-07-23 22:59
You might check out the website Dee directed us all to, you may be able to tell what level your at by poking around for pieces and scales you can play. The Royal Academy has done a good job grading (by difficulty) pieces on many instruments.
Ginny
DEE wrote the following:
Name: Dee ()
Date: 07-16-00 13:27
<deleted>
In the UK, they have a formal system where students can
pass a set of graded exams. This is NOT a contest but a system that measures your current level as a player and
musician (theory is included). The requirements to pass each level are quite specific. I kind of wish that were available to us here in the US as it would provide
amateurs a simple way to answer the question "How well do
you play?"
To learn more about the UK standards, visit the following
site.
http://www.abrsm.ac.uk/clarinet.html
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Author: Meredith H
Date: 2000-07-24 01:35
You could try recording yourself and then listening to yourself playing. Remember that your recording equipment may not be the world's best but it will give you an idea of what you sound like. If you keep the recording and do another in a few months you can also assess the progress you are making.
My band recorded a CD last year and although it was hard to hear myself as I usually mainly do accompaniment work in the parts I could hear myself I was pleasantly surprised. I sounded my nicer from a distance than I did with the sound right next to my ear.
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Author: Kim
Date: 2000-07-24 02:58
If you focus on rating on how you play, you will not enjoy playing as much as you could. Asking what somebody has a seat above you does not help either. Focus on the positive with what you are doing. I was asked recently if I was good. I laughed. The person said say you are good. Well, instead of saying that I am good, I said that I am awesome! I believe it to be true because it is! 
Sometimes, auditioning and having juries are the motivators. If you please professionals, then ultimately, you please yourself.
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Author: col
Date: 2000-07-24 08:58
Stephanie just a small point but if you feel that you need someone to tell you that you are good then odds are you probably are not that good ( im sure this is probably not the case ) you should be able tell where you are in your palying your weakness and strengths and feel confident about it. I would not rely on others to tell you.
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Author: Mark Charette
Date: 2000-07-24 11:21
col wrote:
-------------------------------
you should be able tell where you are in your palying your weakness and strengths and feel confident about it. I would not rely on others to tell you.
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I would disagree strongly with this. That's why there's juries! It's very difficult to judge your own playing - you may have been practicing a mistake for a while, you may think that your dynamics are "just right", you may think your intonation and tone are "spot on" - but it takes an experienced person to listen carefully and tell you where your strengths & weaknesses are.
I've met many a young player who think they're good - until they hear a player of the same age who is heads & shoulders above them. The juries & judging help set goals & expectations. They don't need to be nasty things at all, and you don't need to enter every one, but it does help you determine where to spend your valuable practice time.
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Author: larry
Date: 2000-07-24 14:20
This might help: check out the Amateur Chamber Music Players web site: acmp.net. They have a self grading system that is probably not as rigorous as most others, but at least could give you a ball park sense of where you stand. Also, ACMP is a great concept (a worldwide directory of eager-to-play amateur and some pro musicians) - you might want to consider joining it.
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Author: BAC
Date: 2000-07-24 14:29
I agree with Mark, and feel most have been bypassing a rather sincere question. As a new player myself I need to know if I'm improving or not. My own lack of experience would prevent me from such a critical assessment. Yes I can tell that I'm improving in some areas, but to what extent? For example I can now get through the 2'nd concerto my Mozart - I have improved that much. But you must agree there is so much more to it! We need feed back by many different sources; people who listen, instructors who teach and other musicians.
Giving the advice of 'what ever you feel is good' can be detrimental to the development of young (or old) people who truly seek to improve themselves in some endeavor.
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Author: Allen Cole
Date: 2000-07-25 04:13
Two items:
First, if you visit the Royal Academy's website I believe that you'll find that these exams ARE available in the US. The only problem might be that much of the specified material is published in the UK. Even so, there might be enough choices on the list to squeak by.
Second, the idea of recording yourself is not a bad idea. My college instructor had us record ourselves on his reel-to-reel and play it back at half speed. It can be brutal, but it's definitely helpful. You can do the same thing today on your computer using programs like CD Looper or Transkriber.
You can also record one part of a duet and then play along with the recording. This is a great way to improve your counting and timekeeping. It's also a great way to learn harmony and counterpoint by experience.
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Author: Sara
Date: 2000-07-25 04:40
That thing about recording yourself playing onepart of the duet and then playing alongith the recording for the other half of the duet actually works, but its like your competeing with yourself for tempo and its weide knowing that your plaing a duet with yourself!
Sara
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Author: Meredith H
Date: 2000-07-26 02:28
I used to do the duet thing all of the time. It was great fun (although not quite as much fun as playing a duet with a fellow musician)! It also allowed me to combine different instruments, mainly flute and clarinet but the possibilities are endless.
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