Author: EEBaum
Date: 2011-10-17 16:20
Buster:
It's just the opposite case with me. I've tried to micromanage so many aspects of production that it about ruined my playing and made me a nervous wreck. I've come to the opinion that there is a hell of a lot of overthinking, and that introverted types like most clarinetists are often do themselves a lot of harm, physically and musically, by being physical personal control freaks.
Perhaps my statement does require more qualification, though.
I've come to the opinion that effective clarinet playing (or any wind instrument playing) is a far more intensely physical activity than most people give it credit for, and that this intensity (not to be confused with tension or aggression) is absolutely necessary in order to play with effective musicality. It goes against what I've learned from many teachers, and also on the surface may seem to run contrary to various schools of thought involving relaxation (though it is actually quite compatible).
In essence, playing the clarinet should, must, be a whole-body, all-encompassing experience, not something restricted to breathing here and pushing there and which things do you contract and which things do you relax. I'm not at all advocating for dance-around-the-stage antics, but I am insisting that the process requires a lot more involvement of self than is typically encouraged.
There's a certain physical space one needs to get into, one that I'm still exploring how to effectively put into words, a space that allows incredible liberation of musical possibilities. The kind of space you get into in activities that put you at the ready but also entirely loose. It's the difference between riding a roller coaster clenched up and holding on for dear life, and riding the same roller coaster while completely letting go and relishing the entire experience. It's a space I've only recently gotten into while playing clarinet, and a space that I can instantly tell whether a performer is in by watching.
When in this space, breathing comes entirely naturally, to the point that the player just puts a crapload (or less, if necessary, but with a similar freedom of attitude, freedom not to be confused with sloppiness) of air through the instrument, and the body's mechanisms take care of the details.
Get into the same space as a parkour enthusiast navigating an urban landscape steps ahead of the authorities, as Jackie Chan playfully outwitting a dozen bumbling ninjas, as Link running across the plain pursuing Zelda, as Legolas decapitating three goblins without breaking stride, and the breathing comes naturally.
-Alex
www.mostlydifferent.com
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The Clarinet BBoard
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