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General Concepts for All Instruments

1. Balance Points

Not only should the musician balance their body (1, 2, Instrument to You), they should also balance the instrument.
2. Hands

Straight wrists and curved fingers are important. Fingers should move from the knuckle and not collapse!
3. Straps and Angle

Neck and seat straps should be adjusted to fit the player each time. Check that the instrument is angled correctly.

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Choosing Instruments!

After school “instrument petting zoos” are the best way to get students to select their instrument.

Tips!
1. Get your friends to help!
Place woodwind, brass and percussion specialists in different rooms so that students can test each instrument.

2. Give students rating sheets for each instrument
Teachers rate their ability to make first sounds on a scale

1 = lots of effort would be needed

2 = potential for success

3 = AMAZING

3. Teacher helps to make the final decision.
Meet with students to help them pick an instrument that they will be successful on (and do your best to achieve balanced instrumentation)

4. Provide rental information
Make sure students/parents know the cost and where to rent quality instruments

So after school doesnt work. What now? Well...
1. See if you can pull students out of their classrooms to try instruments one-on-one with you.
2. Students don’t have to start playing the very first day of class to engage in musical concepts! Teach rhythms and basic notation while you do try-outs

Pro tip!
If a student can’t get a sound right away, try a few corrections. But if they can’t get it within 5 minutes, they should try a different instrument!

Which instruments to start?
Flute- Common switch to oboe
Clarinet- Common switch to saxophone, bass clarinet
All- If you have the resources and the students are motivated, why not?

Woodwind Specific Balance:
Depends on the size of your overall ensemble and what instruments students have selected to play!

Lots of Flutes! (5-15)

1 Piccolo

Lots of Clarinets! (5-15)

1-3 Bass clarinets

1-3 Oboes

1-4 Bassoons

2-4 Alto Saxophones

1-2 Tenor Saxophones

1-2 Bari Saxophones

If parts are divided, put more students on the lower part. For example, if there are 5 clarinets total, I would put three on part 2 and two on part 1.

Balance with imperfect instrumentation:
1. Double parts in other instruments
2. Select your repertoire carefully
3. Teach students to listen for correct balance

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SWAB EVERY DAY! :)

Equipment:
Flute Cleaning Rod- with small, soft handkerchief
Silk Swabs- Not cotton swabs, they get stuck.
Humidifiers- for wooden instruments. Changed daily.
Pad-Savers- usually for alto sax and flute. DOES NOT REPLACE SWABBING!

A dry reed is a happy reed :)
- Allow reeds to dry before putting them away
-Always store reeds in a case (NOT on the mouthpiece)
- Throw discolored or moldy reeds away!

Cleaning clarinet and saxophone mouthpieces:

Gently wipe out moisture with your swab after each playing (don’t pull the swab through)

Wash in lukewarm water with non-antibacterial hand soap (avoid getting the cork wet)

Remove calcium deposits by soaking in 10% lemon juice or vinegar and 90% water for 15 minutes

Water in your keys? Oh no! Heres what to do...
When in rest position, keep the instrument vertical (oboe, clarinet, bassoon) or rest it with the keys facing up (flute) to prevent this.

Get rid of the water by placing ungummed cigarette paper or a BG Pad Drier under the key. Open the key before removing.

Swab frequently if the problem persists.

Sticky keys can be solved with powder paper or a dollar bill!

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Flute:
Beginner-
Armstrong 104 (closed hole) = $132.99

Gemeinhardt 2SP (closed hole) = $479

Yamaha YFL-221 (closed hole) = $244.00

Yamaha YFL-281 (open hole) = $399.00
Intermediate-
Jupiter - 711R = $1,000-$1,400

Yamaha - YFL-461H, YFL-481H = $1,400-$2,200

Advanced-
Altus = $9,500-$14,000

Haynes = $3,00-$7,000

Pearl = $2,000-$4,000

Powell = $3,000

Notes: Open holed flutes add an extra level of challenge for young flute players. Holes can be plugged, but consider saving the open hole for the intermediate model.

Oboe:
Intermediate-
Fox 333 (plastic) = $3,510.00

Fox 330 (plastic) = $4,200

Yamaha 241 (plastic, no left F) = $3,000

Yamaha 441 (wooden) = $3,557.99–$3,648.99

Advanced-
Lorée Standard (plastic top joint also available) = $8,000

Lorée Royale (plastic top joint also available) = $10,400

Fox 300 (full conservatory, plastic) = $5,500-$6,000

Fox 400 (Grenadilla) = $6,500

Yamaha 841 = $6,500-$7,500

Yamaha 841L (lined) = $7,500

Notes: These recommended models have a modified conservatory system mechanism with some closed keys and a left F unless specified.

Well constructed plastic oboes are better than bad wooden ones.

Clarinet:
Beginner-
Plastic! (Plastic for marching band!!)
Yamaha = $1,000-1,500

Vito = $100-200

Selmer = $200-$500

Intermediate-
Wood or plastic
Buffet E11 = $3,000

Yamaha = $1,500

Selmer = $1,600

Advanced-
Wood
Buffet R13 = $3,500-$4,500

Buffet Greenline = $3,500-$4,500

Yamaha = $3,000-$4,000

Selmer = $6,000

Clarinet mouthpieces/Ligatures
Beginner-
Mouthpieces:

Yamaha 4C (plastic) = $30

Hite Premiere (hard rubber) = $25

Fobes Debut (plastic) = $40

Ligature:

Stock Ligature (comes with the Clarinet)

Intermiediate-
Mouthpieces:

Vandoren 5RV, M30, M15, M13 (hard rubber) = $90-$150

D’Addario Reserve X0, X5, X10 and X10E (hard rubber) –The X0 is recommended for most students = $105

Ligature:

Cloth Ligature:

Rovner= $25-60

BG L6 Standard Clarinet Ligature = $35

Metal Ligature:

Bonade = $25

Vandoren Optimum = $20

BG Metal Tradition = $145
Notes-
Generally a good idea to upgrade your beginners from the stock mouthpiece to one of those listed.

Keep extra stock ligatures; they break/bend easily; cloth replacements may be wise
Cloth ligatures darken tone, metal ligatures brighten tone.

Saxophone:
Beginner-
Yamaha YAS-52 = (model does not exist anymore)

Bundy I or II = (does not exist anymore)

Conn-Selmer = $2391

Armstrong = $1400

Chateau CAS-50D (student/intermediate) = $1,349

Intermediate-
Selmer SAS-280 La Voix II Series = $2,500

Yamaha Custom = $4,300

Yamaha YAS-62 = $3,200

P-Mauriat PMXA-67 = $2,590
Notes- Tenor and Bari saxes follow the same brands, but are more expensive

Saxophone Mouthpieces/Ligatures
Beginner-
Yamaha Stock = $28

Bundy Stock = (does not exist anymore)

Intermediate-
Selmer S80 C* or C** = $170

Selmer S90 = $160

Vandoren = $120

Notes- Selmer C* is the best all around mouthpiece for classical and jazz playing

Bassoon:
Beginner-
Less quality, but cheaper
Fox Model III and Model IV (plastic) = $8,000 and $6,600

Fox Renard Model 41 (plastic), add D flick key =  $6,000

Intermediate-
Middle quality, but more pricey
Fox Renard Model 240 (maple) = $11,000

Fox Renard Model 222 (maple) = $7,000

Moosmann Model = $7,000-$9,000

Advanced:
High quality, high prices
Fox Model 680 (maple) = $30,000

Moosmann (maple) = $13,000

Yamaha Custom YFG (maple) = $20,000

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01: Vibrato

Teach when... students have a consistent tone and embouchure in all ranges of their instrument

Use recordings!

To help students learn to use their vibrato musically

Steps:

Vibrato is produced by pulses of air for the flute, oboe, and bassoon. For saxophone is produced with small downward jaw motions

1: help students find their abdominal muscles they will be using by coughing, laughing or the “huh!”

2: add this pulse of air to playing a single note on the instrument

3: turn on the metronome at about 60 BPM and play the pulse in quarter notes, eighth notes, then triplets

4: work to increase tempo or rhythm

a. The vibrato may move up to the throat as tempo increases, ThaTS okay

b. Throat vibrato feels like articulating while whistling

c. Usually a combination of abdominal and throat vibrato is ideal

1. Add vibrato to long notes and easy musical passages and gradually increase its use as it gets more comfortable

saxophones can follow the same steps but with practicing the job motion in time. Note that the jaw should only lower slightly but not come too far up and raise the pitch (no chewing the reed!)

02: Trills

In trill charts gray notes are the ones to be trilled

03: Chromatic Fingerings

Clarinet Bb to B (or add the register key and it’s F to F# in the clarion.)

Saxophone F to F#

Clarinet F to F# in throat tones

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Staccato:
1. Stopping the Air

Most common; especially used in slower staccato articulations

“Bounce” the air (“huh”)

Be sure the air stops without the embouchure loosening

2. Stopping with the Tongue

Best to use when the notes are too fast to stop with the air

Example above is for Clarinet

Only use in fast passages

Practice slowly and then gradually add to faster passages

Double Tonguing:
Double tonguing: "too/koo," "doo/goo,"  "ta/ka," "da/ga"

Triple Tonguing: "too/koo/too," "doo/goo/doo," "ta/ka/ta," "da/ga/da"

Practice achieving each syllable with clarity slowly and one at a time. At high speeds, they should sound the same.

Flutter Tonguing:
Two Methods:

1. Using the tip of the tongue (like rolling your R’s)

2. Using the back of the throat (like gargling)

Practice on easy notes; make sure pitch doesn’t fluctuate

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Find a Good Repair Tech or Professional Shop

Find a good tech or shop that will come pick up instruments from your school and provide rentals of all instruments in the shop. You should always receive an estimate for the repair cost before they do any work.

Basic Supplies

Four in one mini screwdriver- For Jewelers flathead screwdriver and eyeglasses screwdriver

Crochet hook

Flat pliers

Plumbers Teflon tape

Aluminum Foil

Powder paper

Sticky backed felt

Clear nail polish

Super glue

What to look for

Tears and rips in pads, bug eaten marks

Bent keys, pads not closing all the way

Dents, cracks, chips

Instrument seal test (clarinet only)

Click and clack (missing corks)

Flapping keys (Spring out of place)

Springs

Use the crochet hook to gently put the spring back in place

Pads

The following our emergency fixes and pads replaced by your repairman

1. Missing pad? Use silly putty and Teflon tape

2. Pad is missing skin? Teflon tape

3. Sax pad falling off? Use tin foil and the Hershey’s Kiss method!

Screws

1. Not all screws need to be tightened all the way

2. Use clear nail polish on loose screwheads

Bent keys

1. Use flat pliers without teeth to gently and slowly unbend keys. Metal becomes brittle, so move the keys a little at a time with rests in between

2. Cheaper metals may snap

Corks

1. Use Teflon tape in an emergency

2. Do not re-glue

3. Can be done yourself with sheet cork and contact cement

4. Plumbers tape can also be used to temporarily fix loose corks

5. Corks that are too tight can be fixed with some gentle sanding, only sand the cork, not the surrounding wood or plastic

Saxophone pearls

1. Superglue these back on

Key corks

1. You sticky backed felt or superglue is a temporary fix

Tips for diagnosing the problem

Number one: find out which notes aren’t working. Does it stop working after putting a certain key down with a certain register?

Number two: did they drop it? Did they try to tighten all the screws?

Number three: play tested. Get a vaccine and then play test the instrument yourself if you aren’t sure.

Keep spare instruments available in your inventory

When in doubt, Send it to the shop. (Don’t do anything you aren’t comfortable with)

Advocate for a healthy repair budget from your admin

Use YouTube and the Internet to help you diagnose

Some instruments aren’t worth fixing

Compare the cost of repair with the replacement instrument

Create a schedule play testing instruments once a year with your friends to fix problems before renting them to your students

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Chapter 1
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-All woodwinds were once made of wood except for the saxophone.
-To change pitch, you change the length of the air column inside the instrument.
-Covering the holes makes the pitch go down, the air column gets longer.
-Quality tone production is proper embouchure mixed with good movement of air.
-All woodwinds require many different fingering combinations.

Chapter 2
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- Balance through the whole body is required to play any instrument, but specifically with woodwinds.
- Focusing on face and fingers creates unnecessary tension.
- Head placement is key. The instrument should go to your head, not the other way around.
- It is important to sit up as to not damage anything on the spine.
- Breathing deeply and without tension is crucial for any instrument.
- To breath well, move the ribs and do not create unnecessary tension.

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The most dynamic and flexible woodwind instrument. Clarinets are vital to the symphonic band, having an impressive four octave range. Balance and blend with other instruments is easy for the clarinet.
There are many different clarinets, but the Bb soprano clarinet is the most common. It can appear in many different ensembles, including concert ensembles, pit orchestras, marching bands, jazz ensembles and more.
Playing the clarinet requires memorization skills, as each octave has a different set of fingerings.

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How to Assemble a Clarinet and Maintain It

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How to Assemble a Clarinet and Maintain It

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1.Stick reed in mouth while assembling clarinet
2. Twist the bell gently onto the bottom of the bottom joint
3. Twist the top joint onto the top of the bottom joint, being cautious of the bridge key.
4. Twist the barrel onto the mouthpiece.
5. Put the soaked reed in the loosened ligature onto the mouthpiece with a thin black strip above.
6. Twist the mouthpiece and barrel onto the top of the top joint.
__________________________

Clarinet must be swabbed everytime you play.
The reed should be dry when put in the case.

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Tone is determined by...
1. Embouchure (vowel shape, Ahhhh- Eeeeee- Ooooo, except clarinet which is always eeeee.)
2. Equipment (Good instruments=good tone)
3. Air (99% of problems)
4. Reed (Can be chipped, too dry, not adjusted right, etc.)
--
Think of tone as a progression.
- Students can have GOOD beginner tone without it being perfect
- Tone development is different for every instrument
- Achieving good tone is like achieving a weightlifting championship.
- Students must play in TONE before they play in TUNE.

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Reminders!

Play in TONE to play in TUNE

Push in (shorten) The instrument if pitch is flat

Pull out (lengthen) The instrument if pitch is sharp

Flute:

Daily tuning-

start with the headjoint pulled out 1/4 of an inch

Tune to Bb or A above the staff

Adjust the headjoint

Special tuning-

adjust pitch by changing the air angle/speed, (shape/size of aperture), moving the jaw, or by tilting the head up and down  (roll in and out as last resort)

Super special tuning-

check the position of the head joint cork using the cleaning rod.

Oboe-

Daily tuning-

push the reed in all the way.

The reed can be pulled out slightly to adjust intonation

Clarinet-

Daily tuning-

tune open G; adjust between the top joint and barrel

Tune clarion C/B; adjust between the joints or at the bell

Special tuning-

increase or lessen lip pressure on the reed to adjust while playing

Bassoon-

Daily tuning-

The bocal should be pushed all the way in an adjustment should come from the embouchure/reed.

Bocal length affects pitch (#2/#3 recommended)

Special tuning-

lower the pitch by opening the embouchure and make sure corners are forward. Raise pitch by closing the teeth slightly using E tongue position and more air

Sax-

Daily tuning-

Start with the mouthpiece most of the way on the cork

Tune to concert Bb (G for alto)

Adjust the mouthpiece

Special tuning-

to lower pitch, relax the embouchure slightly and aim the air downward. To raise the pitch do the opposite.

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Breaking in new single reeds:

1. Do this in batches (2 to 4 reeds at a time)

2. Wet the reeds for about one minute in a bowl of water. Wet the entire Reed.

3. Briefly and gently play each reed for about five minutes. Avoid loud dynamics, lots of tonguing, and Altissimo notes.

4. Let the Reed dry and put it away until the next day. Repeat steps 2-4 every four days.

After this process, you can mark the Reed with a pencil. Put good reeds in your case and bad reeds back in the box. After they’ve been broken in, you can adjust them using sandpaper. Note that reeds get softer as they are played on and as they age!

Fixing warped reeds:

Characterized by waviness at the tip and poor response.

Usually caused by poor reed storage.

Fix it by soaking it and then flattening it along the table of the mouthpiece with your thumb.

Common in bigger reeds

Chirping when you articulate? It needs to be soaked more. If that doesn’t work, try a different reed!

Move the Reed on the mouthpiece:

Both of these options are really only helpful if the Reed is pretty good. They won’t fix a bad reed.

Up and Down:

Placing the reed higher on the mouthpiece can make it for your harder/more resistant.

Moving the Reed down can make it feel softer and more free blowing.

Left and Right:

sometimes, slightly moving the Reed to the right or left on the mouthpiece can help it speak with better sound.

Selling reeds to students:

Having students by Reeds directly from you is sometimes easier (and cheaper) than having the parents do it!

Use reed “punch cards”

students buy a punchcard from you for the cost of one box of reeds (10 reeds). Then, they can cash in the card to get reeds from you whenever they need it.

Tip: keep track of this on a spreadsheet, just in case they lose their punchcard!

Purchase boxes of reeds in bulk using whatever teacher discounts you can get from your local music retailer!

have size 2 and 2.5 if you teach middle school, 2.5 and 3 if you teach high school for every instrument!

See if you can purchase some double reeds from a local reed maker to have on hand for your students just in case. (Maybe they’ll give you a deal if you buy in bulk)

It’s OK for young students to buy the cheap reeds – they’re going to break them a lot anyway!

Rico- Great for young students

Vandoren- Great for high school students

Student should...

Have multiple reads: 3 to 4 reeds that are broken in and work well (no new reeds at a concert!)

Rotate reeds: play a different reed every time to get out there instrument (helps reeds last longer and the student develop flexibility in their playing)

Have a good reed case: helps reeds last longer and saves the money. Make sure students are taking their reed off their mouthpiece every time!

It’s OK to throw them away.

Halloween is also an excellent time to throw away all the new reeds that your student started using in August

Synthetic reads:

Expensive, but maybe worth the investment for some students

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Bb Clarinet: Sounds down a M2
Eb Alto Saxophone: Sounds down a M6

Bb Tenor Saxophone: Sounds down a M9 (aka a M2 plus an octave)
Eb Baritone Saxophone: Sounds down a M13 (aka a M6 plus an octave)
Other transposing instruments:

Bb Soprano Saxophone (down M2), English Horn (down P5), Piccolo (up one octave), Eb Clarinet (up m3), and MANY MORE!

Transposing Key Signatures

Identify the key of the non-transposing instruments (flute, oboe, bassoon)

Transpose the concert key as Sounding to Written.

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The Break- Clarinet

What is the break and why do we care?
The break is when clarinetists move from a note with very few tone holes covered to a note with many tone holes covered. These are the two breaks:
Throat tones/Chalumeau to Clarion (Middle School)
Clarion to Altissimo (High School)

Facts:
If students get a full sound in the Chalumeau register and are covering the tone holes all the way, they are ready for the break.
If students are struggling in the clarion register, try pushing the register key, encourage students to press up with their thumb on their top teeth to try and get more reed into their mouth.
Check that all tone holes are covered.
Giving clarinetists a tenor sax book will help them have new melodies for the clarion range.

For clarinet 2 and lower, make sure the parts dont go over the break.

Alternate fingerings:
Pitch- Some fingerings are more in tune than others or can be used to adjust pitch
Agility- Student should rarely slide fingers on keys (Unless they have rollers) and avoid blips! Also trills!
Tone- Techniques like venting/flicking for the bassoon dramatically improve tone and stability for some notes.

Instead of memorizing all of them, compile good notes and resources you can share with your students!

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Day 2:

Vibrato-
Teach when... Students have a consistent tone and embouchure in all ranges of their instrument.
Use recordings. To help students learn to use their vibrato musically.
Steps...
Vibrato is produced by pulses of air for the Flute, Oboe, and Bassoon. For saxophone, it is produced with small downward jaw motions.*

1. Help students find the abdominal muscles they will be using by coughing, laughing or thinking “huh!”

2. Add this pulse of air to playing a single note on the instrument.

3. Turn on a metronome at about 60 BPM and play the pulses as quarter notes, eighth notes, or triplets.

4. Work to increase the tempo or rhythm

1. The vibrato may move up to the throat as the tempo increases (this is okay!)

2. Throat vibrato feels like articulating while whistling

3. Usually a combination of abdominal and throat vibrato is ideal

5. Add vibrato to long notes in easy musical passages and gradually increase its use as it gets more comfortable

*Saxophones can follow the same steps but with practicing the jaw motion in time. Note that the jaw should only lower slightly, but not come too far up and raise the pitch (no chewing the reed).

Trills-

See "tr" above a note in your music? Trill from the written note to the next highest note in the key signature.
When a "tr" with a squiggly and an accidental is present....Accidentals above the trill symbol apply to the note being trilled to.

When looking at a trill chart, the finger being trilled will be depicted in gray as opposed to fully colored, which would just be a steady pitch.

IMPORTANT CHROMATIC FINGERINGS:
Clarinet Bb to B (or add the register key for F to F# in the clarion range)

Saxophone F to F#

Clarinet F to F# (throat tones)

Forked F vs. Regular F on oboe-
Regular/Left F
Can either be played with the 3rd finger banana key or the F key on the left (this left F key may not exist on your oboe!). The third finger should never slide off the banana key so sometimes we need...

Forked F
Not as stable, but will prevent blips. The addition of the E-flat key can help stabilize but will make the note sharp.

Intermediate Skills-

1. Bassoon - flicking/venting

2. Other alternate fingerings for any instrument (there are lots)

3. Faster/different styles of articulation

4. Scale exercises (chromatic or more advanced key signatures)

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Piccolo:

Sounds up an octave from written

Has the same fingerings as flute

Much smaller, more focused embouchure

Intonation tendencies are usually the opposite of flute

Requires very small intonation adjustments

Confident high school flute students with a good year should play the piccolo

English horn

Sounds down a P5 from written

Fingerings are generally the same as oboe (Except for the extreme high register and a half hole is configured differently)

Plastic is recommended for schools to avoid cracking from intermittent playing

Different Reed than oboe

Only needed occasionally for symphony orchestra pieces or sometimes pit orchestra for musicals

Eb clarinet

Sounds up a m3 from written

Same fingerings as B-flat clarinet but different read

Intonation is usually the biggest challenge

Usually found in more advanced wind band pieces

Do not start your beginners on this

Confident high school students with a good ear can be successful on Eb clarinet

Bass clarinet

Sounds down a M9 from written (same as tenor saxophone)

Same fingerings as B-flat clarinet

Common switch in the second year of playing

Usually plays same parts as bassoon and tuba

Synthetic reeds recommended; go down a half size and switching from B-flat clarinet

Great for students who have good air support, but a naturally looser embouchure than desired for clarinet

Saxophones

Bb Soprano

Transposes down an M2 like a clarinet

Appears in advanced wind repertoire pieces and sometimes jazz band

Bb Tenor

Transposes down M9

Can be switched to in middle school if the student is big enough

Often doubles Trombone line in band repertoire

Essential in jazz band

Eb Bari

Transposes down M 13

Can be switched to in middle school if the student is big enough

Often doubles tuba line in band repertoire

Essential in jazz band

Make sure students don’t get so into doubling that they never really get good at one instead

Switching instruments can sometimes solve student struggles, but not always. Switching is successful when students have a strong understanding of the basics and are willing to practice