Fugue No. 2 in C minor,
arranged and played by Adam Ben Ezra
on the Upright Bass, Oud, Clarinet & Upright Percussion – Ethnic Style!
One of my followers just reminded me that I need to get my oboeback so I can practice for my recital!
… followed by this tweet:
For my recital, I will play Oboe, Clarinet, Tenor Sax, Piano, and Bassoon :-D
I’m happy to read that the symphony’s assets are still in Honolulu. Now I hope things work out and they can form a new group!
Along with the music library, the purchase included percussion instruments, a harp and two grand pianos. Mr. Polivka said he hoped the former symphony musicians would be hired. Steven Monder, the retired president of the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra, and JoAnn Falletta, the music director of the Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra, are helping develop the plan, he said
Grace Williams (1906-1977) was a Welsh composer. I can’t say I’m wowed by the work below, but I’ve definitely never heard of her before, so she gets the mention today.
Fantasia on Welsh Nursery Tunes
Fun!
A Little Night Circus Music:
… you know I stay away from controversial subjects as much as possible. I just don’t like to go there. I hate confrontation. I hate arguing. And I really hate it when I anger someone else. So I’m going to let someone else bring up something that might bother some of you. I will admit, though, that I think we union members, along with the top dogs of the unions, may need to rethink things. (Uh-oh … please don’t send me hate mail! I did, after all, write may need to rethink things! I’m wishy-washy that way!)
Each union branch must assess local circumstances to choose its plan of action and its recommendations to its players.
Unions have served us well over the years, no doubt. However, it seems to me that the time has come to reassess the purpose of the union.
I read that, and much more, here.
But wait, there’s more!…
I just read a wonderful quote from the principal bassist of the Hartford Symphony Orchestra, where an agreement for a 2 year contract has been reached:
“In this time when people relentlessly pursue self-serving agendas and compromise is seen as a form of weakness, both management and labor have shown that the better way is to work together to secure a dynamic and solid future for all. However, our work is not done. The arts are under attack in our country. Our job will be to continue to show the public the necessity of keeping the arts in our lives. A thriving community includes the arts and educational opportunities.”
Read more here.
When i grow up im gonna be a Norwegian polka singer and play the oboe.
Read on Yahoo Answers:
Can you trade in a used flute for a used oboe?
im in band and my teacher gave me the option to switch from playing the flute to playing the oboe but i don’t know if i want to have to buy a new oboe so would i be able to just trade in my used flute for a for a used oboe?
and we have an oboe being played at the library. yeah, you heard me. An oboe, at the library.
Just a few numbers for you, from a performance elsewhere (but hey, Blomstedt did conduct San Francisco Symphony some time ago, right?):
Herbert Blomstedt, Gewandhausorchester & Kammerchor Leipzig
Ruth Ziesak, soprano
Anna Larsson, alto
Christoph Genz, tenor
Dietrich Henschel, bass
10. Qui sedes ad dextram Patris
The musical instruments kids play in school bands and orchestras are traveling denizens of bacteria and fungi, say the authors of a new study. Music education is great for kids, they note, but please, please wash the instruments!”
The above and more can be read here. You can also read the original study if you click on this link.
This problem isn’t just with school instruments. I have students whose reeds look moldy. Whether what I’m seeing is actually mold I haven’t a clue. It could be something else … like bacteria and yeasts, from what the dental article says.
Um … YUCK.
But I can’t recommend dipping your oboe in a soapy bath. Or anything else. I think you could probably swab it out with alcohol, but I’m not sure (nor am I sure that will kill any of the “bugs”). You can soak reeds in hydrogen peroxide, but I wouldn’t suggest letting them soak for long periods of time.
The dental study contains this sentence: “Currently, ethylene oxide is the only agent known to sterilize instruments effectively.”
Well, okay then. I looked up “ethylene oxide”:
Although it is a vital raw material with diverse applications, including the manufacture of products like polysorbate-20 and polyethylene glycol that are often more effective and less toxic than alternative materials, ethylene oxide itself is a very hazardous substance: at room temperature it is a flammable, carcinogenic, mutagenic, irritating, and anaesthetic gas with a misleadingly pleasant aroma.
(Read here.)
You can find this chemical in a lot of things (why am I finding this troubling?):
Uses
* Ethylene oxide is used mainly as a chemical intermediate in the manufacture of textiles, detergents, polyurethane foam, antifreeze, solvents, medicinals, adhesives, and other products. (1)
* Relatively small amounts of ethylene oxide are used as a fumigant, a sterilant for food (spices) and cosmetics, and in hospital sterilization of surgical equipment and plastic devices that cannot be sterilized by steam. (1)
(Read here.)
Biggest advice I can give you?: Brush your teeth and wash your hands before playing.
[name here] thinks oboe is overated
There’s a good article on Alfred Genovese here. Do check it out!
“I just take the music and see what I want to do,’’ he told the Globe in 1998. “It is always evolving. I never say, ‘OK, here it is.’ A week will go by, and I will feel differently about a certain something or other.’’
If I read the right thing, this is a Catalan shawm.
range of a good oboe depends upon 1) arm strength & 2) throwing motion…
