Author: ohsuzan
Date: 2012-05-26 04:33
Hey, Matthew (Geekygeek),
I believe that what Drew says in his point #3 is on the right track, although I might explain it differently.
You MAY be playing with reeds that are too hard, biting them closed, but what I am pretty sure you are doing is starting each tongued tone with a burst of breath, which, of course, inevitably introduces saliva into the reed.
The reason this doesn't happen when you play legato (without tonguing) is because you are not spitting into the reed nearly so much -- you are just keeping the air going.
What you need to learn how to do is play as if every phrase were legato, and then use just the tongue, not the breath, to articulate (start or stop) the notes as indicated in your music.
The lips are just a muscular cushion with which to surround the reed. Ideally, you would be holding the reed with your lips just enough tension to prevent the air from leaking out, and you would keep steady air pressure throughout an entire phrase, using the tongue to start or stop individual notes as indicated. This takes lots of practice!
One great and famous oboist said we should always try to play "on" the air, not "with" the air. That's advice worth remembering and trying to do all the time!
Susan
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