 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: Toby
Date: 2002-03-18 21:41
i'm a sophomore music major at eastman and i noticed how very few of my classmates tap their foot...should i try to wean myself off foot tapping?
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Author: Sandra F. H.
Date: 2002-03-18 22:02
Absolutely! You will be more professional. There was a recent thread discussion about this that you may want to read.
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Author: Sandra F. H.
Date: 2002-03-18 22:05
P.S. I once attended a concert where the foot-tapping was louder than the instruments playing in a pianissimo passage! ...and, yes, it was an amateur presentation.
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Author: William
Date: 2002-03-18 23:34
If your tapping habit has become too strong for you to break, then try tapping just your big toe inside your shoe without actually moving the shoe. Good Clarineting!!!!
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Author: Toby
Date: 2002-03-19 00:07
my foot tapping is inside of my shoe...should i stil try to quit?
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Author: diz
Date: 2002-03-19 00:10
no toby - go on tapping to your heart's desire - but don't complain if, when you get a pro gig (in a symphony orchestra) that you don't last beyond the probationary period. I've played professionally (both clarinet and viola) foot tapping is decidedly unprofessional (in a symphony orchestra) - watching the conductor's beat is really the best way of keeping in tempo - except in the final 5 minutes of Rite of Spring - then I couldn't help but tap a little (as tricky as it was).
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Author: GBK
Date: 2002-03-19 00:27
diz is correct. When you lose the foot tapping habit, you will suddenly feel as if you a now merging with the ensemble, rather than being apart from it.
At first, this may be a difficult habit to break, but you will soon feel a new aspect in your playing. Instead of 80 different "beat counters", you will have one primary beat and 80 followers...GBK
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Author: Fred
Date: 2002-03-19 13:13
I must confess that tapping helps me quite a bit in the style of music I play. I'm reading 2-3 new charts a week that are much more big band/jazz sounding than anything I've played before in my career. The charts are fast and the syncopation is wild - especially when I'm reading a tenor sax part because the stupid arranger didn't include clarinet parts. We'll read them 2-3 times . . . and then "It's Showtime!"
I agree that it's unprofessional . . . but so is coming in 1/2 beat too soon in "solo" fashion. One advantage - the audience can't see our feet!
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Author: Bob
Date: 2002-03-19 13:40
I wonder how tap dancers keep time! Sorry about that but the devil made me do it. I recently viewed a performance and the first chair clarinet tapped her foot and it was obvious to the audience...and rather disconcerting. It made me realize how annoying it might be to some people.
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Author: Sandra F. H.
Date: 2002-03-19 14:25
Try practicing with a metronome, instead. This may help you wean yourself. You will establish a good inner pulse, instead of relying on your moving foot. Good luck!
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Author: Hiroshi
Date: 2002-03-20 05:48
The most important criteria would be how you look like from audience.
IMHO
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Author: Gordon (NZ)
Date: 2002-03-21 15:08
Dismissing all the purism for a while...
We are not all the same. Some of us perceive rhythm more strongly in a physical sense rather than in an aural sense. After all, the processes of walking, running, swinging arms, dancing, skipping, heart-beating, etc, are all physical manifestations of rhythm, and they don't need a visual cue from a conductor, nor an auditory cue.
It is entirely possible that for some of us a foot tap REINFORCES the beat set by the conductor and the other players, rather than taking attention from it.
I agree with Hiroshi, and will continue to wiggle my big toe or twitch my thigh muscle in a manner that is imperceptible to the audience.
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Author: Melanie
Date: 2002-03-21 20:39
IMHO, tapping your foot is distracting. But, I find that when I have complex rhythms or syncopations, I need to tap my foot at first. But, I have also found that it gets in the way of really playing with others. I do duets with a fellow student; Our teacher told us to stop tapping our feet. We then proceded to "conduct" or "beat time" with our clarinets. When we stopped these habbits, we played together much better. Also, I lead 2 woodwind quintets. The younger group has a habbit of tapping their feet. When we are able to stop, we have a lot less problems with really playing in time together. Well, that was my 2 cents. :-)
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