I used to Play Cello... daughter plays Acoustic & Bass Guitar and a smattering of other instruments..woodwind and drums....
The keys take a little time to get used to but switching back and forth from a brass instrument to a reed demands too much out of one’s armature to be proficient with even one of them. It’s hard enough switching back and forth from single and double reeds much less trying to develop an armature that can cope with reeds and brass. Going from the lower to high register on a clarinet not only demands some knowledge of the keys but a trained armature to cope with the change as well. A simple trick is to train your tongue and mouth muscles so well that you can go the entire scale with just the mouthpiece. (Same goes for the brass) I play all the reeds and was first chair b flat clarinet in high school and also subbed the E flat soprano when a score called for it. I also played the oboe and bassoon in orchestra. All was well until I joined a drum and bugle corps and learned to play the soprano single valve and rotor bugle. The band director went crazy when he found out about the corps but I was stubborn and contended that I could handle both but my armature suffered badly no matter what I had to say about it. The better I got with the bugle, the less proficient I was with the clarinet and the double reeds went totally out the window. Yeah, I know you’re just looking for another hobby and maybe I’m simply looking at my own need for perfection in whatever I do and conveying those needs onto you (which isn’’t fair at all). As for myself, I bought a used clarinet a few months ago and played quite a bit whilst my wife was on vacation but the problem is that I have to put my derned teeth in to play it. The teeth do not fit as well as I would like so I only use them on special occasions and putting them in just to play for an hour or so takes some of the relaxation from what I am shooting for. Or at least, that’s my story and I’m stickin’ to it! Anyway, have fun with your new toy and best of luck!
Holly, probably the most famous use of the Oboe in a Rock song was in Sonny and Cher's 1965 song "I Got You Babe". Hal
there was some disagreement as to whether it was an Ocarina, English Horn or Oboe..given that the latter would normally struggle to get so low, but in fact it was an Oboe Here's the parody Song....tune of '' I got you Babe..''. HER: We say our song could be a hit But we know there's something wrong with it. HIM: Well I know what's missing, duh. We need someone from the orchestra. HIM: Boe... BOTH: We got oboe, We got oboe. HER: She has such a pretty sound... I'm not sure that we can hold our ground. HIM: So that she won't upstage our art We'll give her a really boring part. HIM: Boe... BOTH: We got oboe, We got oboe. HIM: So this oboe can emote But in this tune, she plays one note HER: We'll make her sound like a duck To hide the fact that our singing sucks HER: She's wishing that we'd never met But her solo no one will forget HIM: No matter how stupid is this stuff She'll play that part if we pay her enough HIM: Boe... BOTH: We got oboe, We got oboe. HIM: Now I miss the lead guitar HER: With an oboe we'll go far HIM: Don't let fame go to your head HER: Will they miss you when you're dead? HIM: Hear the way she talks to me? [to oboist] OBOIST: I wish this was Tchaikovsky HER: He's such a pain, he drives me nuts [to oboist] OBOIST: And you both can kiss my butt BOTH: We got oboe We got oboe We got oboe We got oboe... ENOUGH OBOE!
Hey Bobby, I was impressed and overwhelmed by your reply to my Clarinet thread! I had no idea that you were so familiar with Brass, Single Reed, and Double Reed musical instruments and the different embouchures they require. Incidentally, I was a bit confused by your use of the word "Armature", but I knew what you meant, so no problem! My experience with a Brass instrument was limited to the few minutes I spent "buzzing" the mouthpiece of the Trumpet I recently returned in exchange for the Clarinet. My experience with Wind Instruments was limited to the Clarinet and Alto and Tenor Saxophones, where the embouchure is much more comfortable and less taxing to the lips than the high pressure stress required on a Brass instrument. I never had the opportunity to play a double reed Oboe or Bassoon, and I understand you have to cut and shape your own reeds for those instruments! As for Dentures interfering with instrument practice, I'm currently having my lower denture relined because of irritation to the gum, so I know what you mean! Let's stay in touch regarding Clarinet progress! Hal (I fooled around with the instruments in the picture, but my favorite horn is the Piano!)
Unfortunately, I do not play it as much as I could. I’m a strange person when it comes to certain things. Once I have accomplished what I set out to do and arrived at the level of proficiency I wished to achieve, I go on to other things. It’s a given that muscle memory does lose some ability over time so I will “practice” by fingering the horn rather than actually playing it. Have you started learning how to play yet? I see that you have a Prelude which is a fairly good beginners horn. Conn puts out some really great instruments but nothing like they did when they competed with Buffet which featured the wrap around register key ebony horns. I started on a Buffet and wish I still had it but alas, when I was in Nam, my dad figured I wasn’t coming back so he sold it for a few cases of beer. It’s worth today would be close to $100K. Actually, it isn’t the worth that still upsets me but the sound quality was so far above any other horn I have ever played and to tell the truth, it was the best friend I ever had. Sad but that’s life. Just a question: If you are truly a beginner, what size reed are you using?
Bought this lovely Kawai Grand in 2003, when it was 22 years old. I paid $12,950, which was more than some new cars cost 16 years ago! Hal
Hal, while you're spending so much time and money on those hobbies, what is your wife doing?...does she have her own hobbies?