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Re: Acquiring Good Tone

Author: RobinDesHautbois
Date: 2011-08-21 18:15

All the above advice is excellent, in particular Mark and Suzan and the recording.

I'll only add the question: for how long have you been playing?

My tone was decent at 10 years of playing, capable of power and velvet, but still thin and reedy. Now I have attacked sound quality with much more "maturity", far more patience and much less acceptance (forgive the contradiction).

All the advice on reed scraping, shape and embouchure given above is really valuable. I will only emphasize the importance of "breath" as opposed to "breathing". When you mentally hear the music as you want it to sound, your body will behave a certain way: you will get a feeling in your chest, abdomen and throat... this way often gets lost when the reed hits the lips... strive to get that back when playing.

Don't think of your oboe as an instrument, think of it as an orchestra: it only extends your inner musician, it is the resonating chamber of your soul. Strive to get it to sound the way you feel. This is NOT easy, takes years and both physical constraints and psychological considerations can get in the way.

In a sense, having left the instrument for 10 years and playing it now as a hobbyist has broken down many barriers for me. The great soloists break down these barriers with self-esteem and focus on music over themselves.

Best of luck!

Robin Tropper
M.A.Sc., B.Mus., B.Ed.
http://RobinDesHautbois.blogspot.ca/music

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2011-08-20 00:51