Posted by Shon on July 29, 2001 at 13:19:20:
"Need help" asked how to improve rythm and time. One of the main areas I need help with is improving intonation. When I practice by myself I tend not to notice when certain notes are out of tune - except when I record myself and listen to the playback. However when I'm playing with an ensemble (with good enough players) I do a decent job of listening and matching pitches.
Currently I'm trialing a couple of tubas and no matter how much time I spend with a tuner I find I really don't get a good sense for the intonation issues of the instrument until I play the horn in an ensemble.
Have you struggled with these issues and what have you done to improve your intonation? I've toyed with the idea of putting a bunch of etudes in Sibelius or Finale and playing along with my synth but entering the music would take a ton of time. Are there good etude books that come with MIDI files or recordings of the etudes? Is there a better way to practice playing in tune and develop my ear? Thanks for any help you can provide.
Shon