Re: Using less air


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Posted by M.M. Carrasco on October 29, 2003 at 08:00:33:

In Reply to: Using less air posted by Kyle on October 28, 2003 at 20:37:34:

Kyle,

You need plenty of air to play in the basement register. What you want is efficient air, slow in speed but large in volume. A lot of teachers call this HOT air, as if you're trying to fog glass with your breath. The volume of air decreases as you ascend in pitch but the speed of the air increases and conversely, as you descend, more volume and less speed. I hear so many kids try to learn to play the lower by blasting and blurting low F's, E's, and below until they faint..... but the best way is to try decending scales played softly. Start on low C and slur downwards chromatically at PP volume at a comfortable tempo. Keep the decible volume low, while trying to keep the pitch accurate and sound quality pretty. As your skill increases, you'll be able to hold the notes longer and eventually louder. The Clarke studies book have some great excercises that are applicable here. Play more and more down there and pretty soon you'll be able to play all your Rochut in three octaves! Oddly, you'll find that as your lowest register improves, your highest register will also get better.

Good luck

Moises Carrasco


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