 The Fingering Forum
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Author: mls
Date: 2003-07-29 22:37
I was just wondering, does anyone have any tips for playing the oboe? Anything at all would really help. I've been playing for about 6 months, but then my oboe got sent in to the shop to get new wood, and I can't play the same as I did before. Any tips you can send in would really be appreciated. Thank you!!!
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Author: TorusTubarius
Date: 2003-07-29 23:08
Wow that's quite a tall order. We've been getting a lot of these really general questions here lately, but no matter. You'll have to get a little more specific than that if you want answers from me that are addressed directly to you(i.e. asking specifically about embouchure, breathing, air support, fingering, etc.).
Briefly, the most general tips I can give you are:
-keep an intense, focused air stream that is more <i>fast</i> than it is <i>large</i>
-don't bite; keep your embouchure flexible
-don't tense up
-develop good hand posture
-don't rely on storebought reeds for very long
-listen to recordings of oboists that you like--This will help you develop a sense of tone and style. On this point I would recommend listening to oboists from your own country because if you get a teacher, that is how he will want you to play. Getting started early on developing that specific concept of tone and style will save you headaches in the future.
If you want us to elaborate on anything, then like I said feel free to ask specifically, not all at once, as that would take a long, <u>long</u> time.
Also I will ask you, what kind of oboe and reed are you playing on?
I would highly recommend visiting this web site as it is the best site on the web dealing with oboe playing that I have ever found:
http://www.public.asu.edu/~schuring/Oboe/oboeinfo.html
What exactly did they do to your oboe again? I don't understand what you mean by "getting new wood". Also, how does it play differently now? Notes don't speak? Tone is different? Out of tune?
Other than that, all I can do is reiterate my invitation to you to post additional questions, wish you luck, and welcome you to the aristocracy!
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Author: mls
Date: 2003-07-31 15:38
Thanks for the website, I'll try it as soon as I get off here! I have a Yamaha oboe and a Jones' reed. I'm borrowing an oboe from my school, so I don't know the exact procedure, but basically they gave me a new body with the same keys I've had because there was a small crack. Now, I've tried playing the same way as I was taught, and now I can barely get a sound out of it, and if I do I get small headaches. I've heard that it would take some time to break in a new oboe, so I thought it would get better, but I got it back 2 1/2 months ago! Can you describe the embouchure please? And can anyone recommend some oboists from the USA? Thank you sooooo much!
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Author: TorusTubarius
Date: 2003-07-31 19:23
A new body with the same keys?!? Wow that's pretty extreme; it's just like getting a brand new oboe with old pads. Are you sure they didn't just repair the crack in the old one? Oboes crack all the time and can be repaired quite nicely without going to the trouble of fashioning an entirely new instrument; cracked instruments are just part of playing oboe.
Getting headaches is also part of playing the oboe. However from what you describe it sounds like there may indeed be something wrong with your horn, most likely a pad leaking somewhere. I take it this problem happens with whatever reed you try since it's been going on for 2 and a half months.
You can test the top joint easily for leaks: Just take the top joint and make like you're playing a G with your left band to seal all the pads. Then with your right hand seal the bottom end of the joint. Put your mouth where the reed goes in and try to suck in or blow out air through the top joint with everything closed up. If there is a pad leaking you will hear it at that point. For the bottom joint just look over it closely and make sure all the pads seal their respective holes completely. Work all of the keys and watch them to see how well they are seated on the holes.
Another reason why the instrument may be so hard to play is that it may have cracked again. If you did indeed get entirely new wood, then this is a definite possibility.
When people talk about breaking in an oboe, what they mean is allowing time for the wood to become used to the expansion and contraction that occurs as the instrument warms up and cools down while being played, and getting the wood used to all that vibration. Mostly this is just to decrease the likelihood of future cracking, though some people think it is good for the tone as well. Breaking in the oboe has nothing to do with how easy it is to produce a sound. When you get a new oboe, you should always start out playing it just a little bit at a time everyday, gradually increasing that time over the period of several weeks.
It's really sort of difficult to diagnose exactly what the problem is without actually being there and watching you play. You say when you try and play like you were taught? How were you taught, and by whom? That may also be the problem.
You definitely will want to look into other reeds besides Jones. If you go online and use any search engine (type in something like "oboe reeds"), then you will find many different makes. I really don't know much about any of them, but if you can find one that says it is American scrape, then get those. An even better idea would be to find a professional oboist who makes his own and purchase reeds from him. And an even better idea would be to start taking lessons from that professional and get him to teach you how to make your own reeds, which if you are going to continue playing the oboe, you will need to learn how to do.
There are several things to keep in mind about the oboe embouchure.
1) If you bite down on the reed, you are not allowing the oboe to speak with its full voice. The tone will sound pinched, lifeless, above the pitch, and you will have almost no dynamic range. Biting down on the reed is analogous to trying to sing while someone is squeezing his hands on your throat; you are literally strangling the reed. So do not rely on pressure from biting down to stabilize the sound.
Conversely, you do not want an embouchure with the mouth too open either. Playing like this will produce a wild, unfocused tone and will wreak havoc on your intonation. It's best to find that happy medium where your mouth is close enough to focus the tone while at the same time you are not biting down on the reed and pinching the sound. I find I sound the best when my teeth are about as far apart as when I lightly bite down on my little finger, something like half a centimeter apart.
2) The oboe sounds best when the reed is allowed to vibrate freely, but in a controlled fashion. This is accomplished by having an embouchure which provides relatively equal pressure from your lips on all sides of the reed. What you do is place the reed on your bottom lip and then roll your lips a little ways over your teeth as you close your mouth as specified above. Then you pull your chin flat and use your lips to keep the corners of your embouchure tight around the sides of the reed. Try to think of this as one motion; the pulling of your chin flat provides the strength to keep your corners tight, not unlike how a drawstring closes a pouch. With your lips in this position, it should feel a little like how your lips feel when they are puckered out to whistle since you are using the exact same muscles in the same way, only with the reed in your mouth you have to keep your lips covering your teeth.
It's important to not roll your lips in <i>too</i> far since this will produce a very dry tone and will reduce the overall flexibility of your embouchure. You have to find that happy medium for yourself just like how you did with how far apart to keep your teeth.
3) Probably the single most important word to remember about embouchure, next to <i>no biting</i> is <u>flexibility</u>. The is important for two reasons: a) Your embouchure will naturally change as you go from the low to high registers on the oboe. As you play down low, you should think of saying the letter "O", and as you ascend higher, especially beginning with the second octave key notes, you should think of saying the "EE". This has the effect of slightly rolling the reed out of your mouth down low and rolling it in up high which is necessary for good tone production and response. b) It is the subtle changes in embouchure and air that allow the timbre of the oboe to sing a line instead of merely playing a bunch of notes in succession. The oboe is capable of all different kinds of shading with its tone that are due largely to the control exercised by the player with his lips over the vibration of the reed; this is not possible unless the player has a flexible embouchure. The oboe's double reed device is structurally and functionally closer to human vocal cords than any other instrument; this is why the oboe is so expressive. In a way, learing to play the oboe is like learing to sing through another set of vocal cords. Just something for you to keep in mind as your progress.
Yes I'd be happy to recommend some American oboists. These will give a good idea of what American oboe playing sounds like today.
Kathyrn Greenbank - Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra
Peter Bowman - St. Louis Symphony Orchestra
Richard Woodhams - Philadelphia Orchestra
John Dlouhy - Atlanta Symphony Orchestra
Elaine Douvas - Metropolitan Opera Orchestra
Alex Klein - Chicago Symphony Orchestra
John Ferrillo - Boston Symphony Orchestra
Some older recordings feature some of the more legendary figures of American oboe playing. Modern American oboe playing has moved away from the sound of some of these players, but it's important for you to get an idea of what they sound like since the sound of today stems directly from their instruction:
John de Lancie - formerly of the Philadelphia Orchestra
Ralph Gomberg - formerly of the Boston Symphony
Harold Gomberg - formerly of the New York Philharmonic
Ray Still - formerly of the Chicago Symphony
Bruno Labate - formerly of the New York Philharmonic
John Mack - formerly of the Cleveland Symphony (a name you will run into again and again)
Marcel Tabuteau - formerly of the Philadelphia Orchestra and the man who pretty much invented the American sound all by himself. (Another name you will hear again and again)
Anyway that's all I've got for now.
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Author: TorusTubarius
Date: 2003-08-02 15:15
Long speeches about the oboe are my trademark.
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Author: mls
Date: 2003-08-02 16:33
I'm pretty sure it is a new body, because it's a completely different color now- before it was really dark brown, almost black, and now it's a light brownish-and it feels a lot lighter. Both of my band directors said it was getting new wood, too, and they're the ones who took it to be repaired. However, it is the same keys, because there is still a small chip on one of the keys like before.
Before I took my oboe in, it was always off key, and then quit completely the day before a concert, and 2 days before a contest! It was playing perfectly, but that only lasted a week and then it quit again, so then my band director took it back in, and whoever fixed it decided it would just be better to get a whole new body. I think that the always being off key thing was a major factor too. Too bad I didn't just get a new one, but then again, my school payed for it, so I can't complain.
Yes, it is happening with every reed I try. I tried different makers like Jones, La Voz, and Rico (which is what I usually use, but I was experimenting with others), but that didn't fix it either.
I'll check for a pad leaking or another crack as soon as I get off the computer- the sooner I get this fixed the better!
My band director taught me, and she can play very well. I also got a whole bunch of books from the library to research it further, and they all agree with what I've been taught, so I don't really think that's the problem.
I haven't found any professional oboists in my town who give lessons, and actually the people who work at all the music stores I've gone to don't even know what an oboe is! When I first went to buy reeds, they tried to give me one for bassoon!
Are you a professional?
Thank you sooooooooo much for everything!
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Author: musichick
Date: 2003-08-04 01:21
haha someone tried to sell me a bassoon reed once, too. Ok, you said you usually play on Rico reeds? I have a HUGE problem with Rico reeds, I absolutly HATE them. I used to use them, but the ones I got at least were crap. I've found Selmer to be an improvement, but like everyone says, handmade ones are the best.
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Author: Mr. Man
Date: 2003-08-10 17:12
I've found tilting the reed sideways cuts down on your notes cracking on you.
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Author: Fish
Date: 2004-09-18 18:10
The reed has a LOT to do with your playing - try soaking ur reed for a while b4 you play... it will help. But you really need to find private lessons - I started playing and taught myslef for a year and I am one of only a handful of oboeists in the world who play the way I do... also after only 6 months you're not going to sound good. I don't know anyone who hasn't still sounded like a duck after playing for only 6 months. It's a hard instrument, so have some patients and stick with it.
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