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Re: looking for a good piece

Author: rickw48
Date: 2009-06-19 10:07

Repertoire can be a funny business. I'm a returning oboist (started again in January), having been a full-time student in my youth. I decided that I didn't want to play stuff that I'd done before, partly because I wanted to learn new things and partly because I didn't want to engage my critical "third eye" into comparing my current efforts with those of yesteryear.

Anyway, as a general point, I'd say you can look at repertoire in two ways: either choose a composer or style that you enjoy (my own favourites are bach, handel and telemann) and find something big of their's that you haven't tackled before (Telemann's concerti are marvellous). Alternatively you could go the opposite way and choose something that you find difficult stylistically (for me it's french baroque - all those twiddly ornanments) and immerse yourself in it.

I've been working on a less-known Bozza piece just called Pastorale (pub. Leduc), which doesn't look much (compared to say the Fantasie Pastorale) but is quite challenging. I'm just about to start on the Howells sonata (pub Novello), which is a major undertaking.

As a further thought, once you've decided what you want to learn, how about not actually playing it for two weeks and instead spending the hour a day (or however long you've allocated) just reading the score and becoming completely familiar with it, preferably without listening to a recording either. When you come to play it, you will make real progress surprisingly quickly.

And why not create a performance opportunity for yourself by the end of the holiday - could just be friends and family. A deadline often hightens the concentration.

Enjoy!

Richard

Richard

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