Meri’s Musical Musings

Notes on how people used to find a music teacher… It’s amazing how it used to be that if you liked the way a musician plays in a performance, and you were interested in learning how to play yourself, you would ask if they taught. Now many people seem to pick a teacher from an [...]

Just thought I’d share a few ideas I tried out in my practicing that worked really well recently. Sometimes it can be hard to adjust between the length of a B flat clarinet and an A clarinet, especially with the right little finger keys. I found it helps to play a few scales on the [...]

Is music more important than sports? Though I may be biased, being a musician and music teacher myself, I think music, and perhaps the fine arts generally, may be more important than sports. While both can be competitive if one wants to do so, the commitment most music teachers ask is far less than what [...]

On distractions and practicing…. It is often said that practicing should be done in a quiet environment with few distractions. However, when performing, there are often minor distractions such as people coughing or babies crying. I find that occasionally practicing with distractions around actually helps with performance, because it’s an opportunity to learn deep concentration. [...]

http://www.pianoworld.com/forum/ubbthreads.php/topics/1271416/Transitioning%20from%20Music%20Schoo.html#Post1271416

Intervals:   Above:   Minor 2nd: Jaws Major 2nd: Silent Night Minor 3rd: O Canada, Greensleeves (What child is this?) Major 3rd: When the saints go marching in Perfect 4th: ‘Here comes the bride’ Augmented 4th/Diminished 5th: first two notes of ‘The Simpsons’ TV show theme Perfect 5th: Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star, Theme from Star Wars [...]

Should some students not be in school band if they take private lessons? A number of years ago, a clarinet student of mine had complained to me that his school program was extremely boring, and was wondering whether he should quit the school band. While I know most school and private teachers would disagree with me, [...]

Mine: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ES4M93q-Mok http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-NeqVKQuNQk http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0Q58Rvqs2Ag   My husband’s: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qvu5U5A47Bw http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6fm-LwUbIOc

http://www.practicespot.com/article.phtml?id=111

Rubank book of Clarinet Solos, Easy Level, arr. Himie Voxman Rubank book of Clarinet Solos, Intermediate Level, arr. Himie Voxman Clarinet Solos, vol. 1 (ed. Thea King) Take Ten (arr. James Rae) Short Classical Clarinet pieces Solos for the Clarinet Player/ Ed. Arthur Christmann Solo Pieces for the Beginning Clarinetist (ed. Norman Heim) Solo pieces [...]