Author: ohsuzan
Date: 2005-09-27 04:39
Ah! Shall we agree to ban all reedmakers-for-hire, then? Mandate stiff fines for selling or conspiring to sell ready-made reeds, and jail time for repeat offenders? Classify pre-gouged and profiled cane as a controlled substance?
I just don't see the need to be so terribly doctrinaire about this issue.
If I were a young person who wanted a career as an oboist, I would certainly want to learn reedmaking.
But youthful career-seekers are not the only oboists in the universe. I would even venture to say that youthful career seekers are a distinct minority of oboists, in any milieu.
And because, in the United States alone, our schools and conservatories annually turn out more phenomenally gifted musical performers than will ever find positions in any orchestra, many of these give up the "serious" pursuit of their instrument until much later in life
So, what are we to do -- the underachievers and "rebeginners" who comprise the majority of oboists in the world?
Should we have another rule to disallow adult oboists who, because of family and work responsibilities, are hard-pressed to find time to even practice the instrument two hours a day? Must we who are not "serious" oboists (kroboe's words, not mine) always feel badly about our love for music, and for the instrument? Must we refrain from doing as well as we can, because we cannot do as well as we might?
I can assure you, I will never be a threat in the Gillet competition, and the Cleveland Orchestra will not be looking me up if their most recent candidate for the principal's position goes the way of the last three.
But I can also tell you that there are two community orchestras who are absolutely thrilled to have me as their oboist -- a thrill surpassed only by my pleasure at being able to do it for them. With my store-bought reeds.
Susan
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