Author: d-oboe
Date: 2006-03-14 02:08
But it is the tongue that makes the final cutoff to the sound!
Even in the most beautiful cutoffs of a Mozart Adagio, the tongue is what makes the last move. Just think why: the tongue is the valve that seperates air flow from the reed.
It's not lips: just try to close off a reed with ONLY your lips. It won't happen
It's not air: if you let air just die off, the pitch will sag.
Embouchure....this is what controls diminuendi, because the opening of the embouchure gradually gets smaller to make the quieter dynamic..but it doesn't stop the sound; otherwise the pitch would jump at the end of the note as the embouchure closes.
The tongue is the only part of our body that can actually stop the air - and thus vibration, thus sound - coming through the oboe.
Think articulation: when playing staccato notes there is TWO SIDES to that articulation. The beginning articulation, and the ending articulation. Both are equally important for the clarity of the note. Why should a longer quieter tone be less clear? It has to have a beginning and an end. It is possible to have a very soft beginning and a very soft ending to a note, all while using the tongue. The difficulty (as mentioned in my last post) lies in controlling the speed at which the tongue approaches the reed. Of course, if it thwacks at the reed there will be a bad sound - but this can happen in ANY dynamic not just piano. Equally, controlled tonguing can happen in all dynamics as well. A boisterous forte can have the same clarity and control as a supersoft piano. The result? Clean sound!
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