Air Flow

AIR FLOW!

Myself, I play the Clarinet and piano.  On the Clarinet, I am currently being taught by Marie Lloyd at the RAM and David Campbell at school.  Both of them keep on commenting about air flow but not to only me, but also their other students.  This blog is for mainly woodwind players, but for Brass players, tell me what you think - Lucas

Air flow benefits your legato playing and gives your phrases a rounder shape and helps to improve going 'across the break'- a term used by clarinettists when they cross the registers.  If your teacher says you need to play smoother or think in longer phrases, air flow is the way to go!  Your diaphragm is a muscle which contracts when you breathe in and relaxes when you breathe out.  Breathing is the key to wind playing - the name says it all!  It is important that you fill your chest up with air.  Beginners tend to raise their shoulders to get the biggest breath - but this only uses up 1/3 of your lung's capacity.  Instead, relax and take a big breath, and when playing, support from the diaphragm.  If you touch your toes and breathe in and out, you can feel what it should be like. Then try doing it standing.  This will not only give you a nicer tone, but mean you can play long notes - a key thing to practise on a wind instrument.  Your phrases will feel longer, and improve your playing by about 10x!

Now onto the topic of air flow, not breathing, think of your playing as a long curved arrow like this and play out!  Also, in each phrase include a crescendo and a diminuendo.  This will make sure your audience will stay interested and it will improve our General Musicianship.  Now, breathe as above and bear in mind what I have just said, and remember to use it in performances AND practises


Remember to comment and tell me what you would like to see next
-Lucas

HELP WITH PRACTISING!

HELP WITH PRACTISING!

Everyone from Grade 1 to Grade 8 does the same thing to help improve - PRACTISE

It's very important to practise WELL and EFFICIENTLY to make sure you get the most out of your time.  However, if you follow these tips, your practise will improve and in the end you will be able to easily get past the tricky bits in your piece and be able to maximise your time.

Firstly, there are 3 stages of your practise.  These are:

1. Before
2. During
3. After 

Stage 2 - During is the most vital part of your practise as this is when you are actually improving your piece and getting better, and here you improve as a musician.  The other two stages help to improve Stage 2 and these stages set-up an efficient stage 2. Firstly, lets go through stage 1 - 'Before'

• Make sure you do something to do with your practise without having any other thing on your mind.  Maybe listen to some music which you are about to practise, or just have some peace and quiet.  NOTHING IS WORSE THAN PRACTISING WITHOUT CONCENTRATION
• Get ready by putting your instrument together, eat something if hungry, go to the toilet if needed - try and insure no unnecessary breaks during your practise.
• Drink water and also drink while practising - it helps improve concentration, vital to a good practise.  If you go to a Saturday School, it is important to bring this.

Now that Stage One has been covered, it is time to focus on the second stage - 'During'.

• Use every last bit of concentration during practise.  If you have practised well, you should be dead tired by the end of it!  If you start it tired, then what is the point? 
• Look out for melodic patterns such as dominant sevenths, diminished seventh etc. and LOOK AT THE PIANO PART!
• Instead of just noticing hard bits, practise them.  I know - everyone does that
• Make sure to use a metronome if you are struggling with rhythm - if you don't have one, it is a must-buy! (I personally recommend Korg, and try not to use one on a smartphone as it could be a distraction as mention in Stage 1!)
• Write stuff into your music or jot down on a notepad to remember for next time.  A pencil is a must for all Musicians!
• If you don't have a lot of time, try to focus on the tricky bits of the piece and not the easy bits which don't need a lot of work.
• PRACTISE SCALES!!!!!!!!!
• Take a break after 45 Minutes - there was a study showing that after 45 minutes you lose your concentration.  Have a drink, eat a biscuit or just 'chill', but NO BOOKS OR VIDEO GAMES!
• Don't say "I've practised for 20 mins so I will stop, despite being in the middle of practising the hard bit."  Finish what you are doing, then go on and finish.
• You will never be 'perfect' - not even the best musicians in the world like Martha Argerich of Martin Frost become perfect.  If you have sorted out all the technical bits and dynamics and so on, then build on the piece and make it yours!  You can always improve.  If you find this hard, try to find another musician to practise with if you struggle to notice mistakes

Now we have reached the final stage :). Here are the focus points of the 'after part'-

• Remember what needs to be worked on everyday and DON'T JUST MAKE 'MENTAL NOTES'
• Don't rush off saying 'thank god it's done' - recap the practise and jot down on paper.

Hooray - you have read my first blog on Practise.  Comment, make requests and I promise I will see every comment and try to respond to them.  Just remember what I have said and use it in your practise!  Good Luck....