PERFORMANCE

Mr. A’s mini recital was impressive as usual.  His intonation and control at the softest dynamics were incredible.  The performance was capped off with Pryor’s Air Varie, where he makes the hard stuff sound so easy!

GENERAL COMMENTS

Before hearing students, Mr. A made some general comments:

He started with slide technique and revisited this through the day.  Try holding a coin between your thumb and the crossbar, and don’t drop the coin.

Mr. A said that there was a time when he tried to inhale all the air he possibly could, but now he just aims for relaxed breaths.

He encouraged us as musicians, to know everything about our craft like an electrician or magician.  This includes points of performance style as well as technique, such as rhythm & pitch.  Those two elements come easier for some, and others have to work harder at them.

His current students are asked to use a timer to isolate and work on various techniques for 10 minutes each.  It’s a good way to practice and improve those individual skills that you want, and it’s those 10-minute daily visits to each skill that are more productive than working on any one thing for an hour.  For instance, multiple tonguing, practicing very slowly: triple – tah tah KAH, tah tah KAH — double – tah KAH, tah KAH across scales or passages from the music, very slowly.

MASTERCLASS

Mr. A spent 20 minutes with each student.  To make his points he was able to demonstrate each of the difficult solos that the students were preparing.  He wanted them to catch on very quickly to what he asked them to do, and to maintain the changes he required, not slipping back into their old habits.  He encouraged them to:

– work less hard
– stop reaching for the bell to find 3rd position
– correct rhythm and pitch issues
– play more musically
– expand their dynamic range
– play in a more connected, Bordogniesque style, and not just for legato passages
– look at upcoming high notes in context, lead up to them
– slow down the air speed, especially towards trying to play the upper register like the lower
– lower the music stand out of the way for better performance presentation
– anchor their mouthpieces so they wouldn’t move their faces too far away when breathing, to avoid being late on the next entrance
– practice soft playing, which will improve loud playing since you are working on the center of your tone

The last student performed a mock first round of an orchestral audition, after which he learned that Mr. A would not have voted for him to continue after that round.  He reviewed the student’s minor flaws and said that together it all adds up to a “no.”  He also mentioned wrong notes in auditions.  He said you earn credit during your audition by playing musically and a committee can forgive a wrong note here and there if you have played musically. Professional players from the audience were asked to write comments and turn them in to the student.

QUESTION & ANSWER PERIOD

There was one question at the end about performance anxiety.  Mr. A said that it’s normal to be nervous.  Everyone is nervous.  He suggested to focus on the music and essentially let yourself be a vessel for the deliverance of the music, saying that he has no memory of some of his better performances – it was like he was somewhere else at the time.