Author: ohsuzan
Date: 2004-04-01 02:41
Thanks for your comments and suggestions, Jim and Katrina. They are right on the money. Actually, I had just figured out the thing about keeping my mouth a little open and not clamping down on the reed -- just figured that out last week -- and it makes a world of difference. Also the "ah" space in the mouth. I'll try the "spinning" trick tomorrow.
It is remarkable how much of what you say about oboe technique is similar to vocal technique. In particular, the "ah" space and the advice to lighten up on the higher tones, without trying to carry the "weight" of the lower tones upwards. Another piece of advice along this line that I have heard is to focus the air well-forward and feel it as going to a very small point in the mask of the face (some say the nose). This is exactly the advice that is given to singers who are trying to get over the vocal break that occurs (in females) around Eb-E. Didn't Jay Light write about the oboe being a lot like the human voice?
Katrina, I am using the Rubank method, and have moved into the Intermediate book. I notice that the book starts out with several pages of legato exercises that address the c-d interval, and others of that same ilk. So I guess "there's nothing to it but to do it," then? Well, I am getting it, but I'm not there yet.
Thanks for your encouragement.
Susan
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