.Saturday, November 29, 2008 ' 8:38 PM Y
music is my life.
add on from previous post by mel hahaha
things to do for december sectionals :-
- develop a nicer and better sound
- keep track of timing, always have the subdivisions in your head (im dead serious)
- blend with the band, you all are doing support most of the time
- dont panic when you see running notes, take things slow, and slowly go faster
- dont go around thinking since you can run the notes fast you can slack. play the running notes slow and be amazed by how many mistakes can you make.
- ALWAYS breathe at least 2 counts earlier
- altos, play your sound just above the horns. tenors, play your sound just above the euphoniums. bari&bassoon, play your sound above the tuba. SUPPORT. not solo.
- have one eye on the score, one eye ON THE CONDUCTOR, one ear on your own sound, one ear on the whole band and relevant instruments.
- dont slow down in the later parts of danse. always look at the conductor.
- dont be fooled by the apparent easiness of overture no.1. it was one of the hardest pieces i played. not in terms of technicality. as a whole. tenors will definitely go flat when you play your B and F, be careful. altos, play out your semi quavers with confidence.
- when the piece tells you to go piano, GO SOFT. vice versa for forte. GO LOUD. when i say play loud doesnt mean play until blasting. thats using the embrochure to play loud. use air. LOADS of air. then you'll get the full saxophone sound.
- watch out for staccatos and accents and all. its important.
- Prof. Kelly Tang had set up several traps in overture 1.
change of key,
circle of fifths melody, and
contrast in dynamics are some of the ones that had been identified. there's more. dont be arrogant and be careful.
- finally, have confidence in your ability, but dont be complacent. there's a subtle difference.
this is all i can actually think of and help you guys for the coming competition. you musnt think that since there are 100+ days to syf, there's still time. think. its not everyday you have band practice. if say there's 3 practices a week. 121 days to syf to be exact. 121/7= 17 weeks. 17 x 3 = 51 practices. add in the exchanges and the rough number of practices youre probably gna miss or pon and the number whittles down. and these practices does not include full time sectionals. very soon april's gonna arrive. have the sense of urgency there. we missed a silver by a hair last time and it was heartbreaking. this is not only confined to you all but the whole band.
remember the 5 Ps:
Present
Punctual
Pencil
Practice
Passion
be Present for all practices. be Punctual so that time can be efficiently managed. bring a Pencil to note down anything important. Practice makes it perfect. and have Passion in what youre doing. if you dont have the last P, then you might as well kiss the silver goodbye. only in Passion can you find enjoyment in your music.
and of course, have some fun! (:
when you finally felt that you have done as much as work as possible in one day, play something nice to relax. but that is not an excuse to slack.
saxes have an important job. they serve as a link between woodwinds and brasses.
bassoon's job is to provide the reed sound together with oboe. dont think youre insignificant. you must lie above the tuba sound so as to bring out the colour of the bassoon. that is, just play slightly louder than the tuba. listen to him, and blend with him.
jiayou! (:
Eli. As. =D
