Oboe 101: Do you project your sound? Recently, I’ve noticed another approach to dynamic contrast working, especially with the ensembles I coach. Most schools in the area have either already had their final concerts or will have them this week, so last week was a general final hurrah for in-school sectional work. Often that means that coaches are asked to listen to rehearsal and provide feedback. At one school in particular, I heard the director ask students to play the dynam

Are you striving for perfection or mastery? I've been thinking a lot about the idea of mastery vs. perfection lately. The idea was sparked by this Instagram reel that came across my feed last week. The two points that Gregory Agid makes in the video that stick out to me the most are: 1. The concept of what is "Perfect" is subjective to the perceiver 2. Mastery is a process of learning something that you don't know. Through years of performing, I've come to understand and

Practice performing There’s a difference between practicing a piece and performing a piece, right? One of the biggest pitfalls musicians fall into is not practicing performing . I don’t specifically mean practicing having the experience of playing in front of other people, although that is helpful. I mean practicing playing from start to finish of the piece without stopping no matter what . If you can’t get through a passage without starting and stopping in your practice, yo

I've just gotten through back-to-back auditions, then a faculty recital, and was practicing during my President’s Day break when I noticed a concerning number of times that my second octave key got filled with water not too long into my practice session. Likewise, nearly all of my students have had issues with water in their octave keys, and one weirdly in their E key. All this to say…if you’ve been having chronic water bubbles in your keys, you’re not alone! Fix Option 1: R

Oboe 101: Should you try Legere reeds? Since the start of the year I played 2 concerts with completely new-to-me repertoire (Verdi’s Requiem, and Wind Ensemble arrangements of Borodin Symphony 3 and The Magic Flute), and started really making reeds and practicing in earnest for two upcoming auditions. No, of course they don’t overlap much in terms of repertoire. Yes, one is principal and the other is second oboe. What can I say, I’m ambitious! Or crazy! Who can tell?! Last T

Oboe 101: Is there such a thing as too much air? It was really nice to hear from a few subscribers recently - today’s edition was inspired by a question I got from Glen. Glen is a multi-woodwind musician, and says “ my problem is air….too much air, to be precise. [...]I have gotten into taking less air and releasing air while resting if I feel the back pressure is too much, but still run out of steam after about 30 minutes of practice/playing” I think all of us who have pla

I consider the F# and G fingerings to be super advanced, and I don’t see them all that often in my repertoire as a freelancer. So, if you want to know my favorite fingerings for F# and G, they’re listed below. An important note: the fingering I prefer for G works better on my Howarth than it did on Loree instruments I’ve owned in the past, so you might want to use the second-best G fingering listed below if you play a Loree. F#: 3rd octave XXO|XXO G: 3rd octave XOX|XOO Secon

As we play, we can’t blow all our air through the tiny opening in the oboe reed, so extra deoxygenated air builds up in our body. The pressure of the extra air builds up over time and that’s what is often referred to as “back pressure”. It’s inherent in playing the instrument, and can be really uncomfortable. Focusing the air is only one part of the equation, though, the other side of coping with the back pressure is releasing that deoxygenated air from your lungs regularly

Note: this post was originally featured in my newsletter in January 2025. Last week (Wednesday 01/22/25), I auditioned for the second oboe chair with the Sacramento Philharmonic and Opera. I was unsuccessful, but played musically and got through the whole list. Of course I’m disappointed, but I’ve been trying to learn from the experience so I can do better at my next audition. I realize that most of you reading this newsletter won’t go on to audition for a professional orche

I got a question from subscriber Emily. She describes struggling with stamina. This is a common issue for oboists, and right now I can think of at least 3 of my 18 weekly lesson students who aren’t happy with their stamina. I think our (oboist’s) stamina comes down to multiple factors which can be hard to pick apart from each other because they’re all so fundamental to playing. In this blog, I’ll endeavor to describe the factors I see at play in stamina issues, but I’d also r

One of the joys and sorrows of playing oboe is the variability in reeds. We’ve all had that one amazing reed that felt super comfortable, and seemed to play like magic! We’ve also had other reeds that are…close to feeling perfect, but just a little bit off. Maybe a bit out of tune, maybe the tone is just not quite open enough. Every reed has a “Goldilocks” amount of reed that needs to go in your mouth as you play. The “Goldilocks” spot is the amount of reed in your mouth wh

Whether you are a student applying for All-State, an adult amateur, or a beginning oboist, you will need to make a recording of yourself at some point. Plus, recording yourself playing can be an amazing practice tool and reveal those things a private teacher or conductor might notice for you. Plan ahead for your recording session: Know the guidelines This includes: total allowed length of recording, what repertoire is to be played, what order to play in, whether the record

We’re all so busy these days (students, and parents, and teachers), so today I’ll be sharing my top 3 strategies to make practice sessions really effective. (These tips work for all musicians, not just oboists!) Last week I challenged students to make a practice schedule, and be specific about the exact days and amount of time that they would dedicate to practicing, and write their practice schedule down. If you're a student and you didn't write out your practice schedule

In April 2025 I played a run of “Turn of the Screw” by Benjamin Britten. If you’re not familiar with the opera, it’s a ghost story/psychological thriller with themes based upon a 12-tone row. Talk about fun and weird and spooky and hard! The orchestration is for a small orchestra, basically a string quintet (with bass), a woodwind quintet, harp, percussion, and piano/celeste. Although the show closed yesterday, I think I’ll have the melodies floating around in my head for the

Today’s quick tip is an answer to the question: Does it matter which blade of the reed is up? The short answer is: Yes! If you’re a longtime reader, you’ll know that I’m not happy with a short answer, so let’s get into it. In reed making, we use a slightly rounded cutting block to clip the tips of most reeds. Cutting block on my desk The subtly rounded top of the cutting block means that the reed is almost always held at a slight angle, making one of the blades ever so sl

I’ve found that choosing an anchor point for my reed has a huge impact on my playing, and I hope this concept will be helpful to you as well! What is a reed anchor point? In this case, I’m referring to the spot on the player’s upper or lower lip that the reed presses into more strongly. When we play, we tend to press the reed into either the upper or lower lip, depending on our personal preference and the intonation of the reed. The anchor point that you play with can have a

Warmer temperatures and Spring days often mean changes in our schedules as concerts and final performances approach. Maybe there’s a...

The month of March kicks off Youth Orchestra Audition season in my studio. I’d say about ¾ of my students who are eligible for a Youth...

Let’s start by defining the range of the third octave on the oboe. I consider C#6 to be the first third octave note, and the highest...

Most oboes have silver-plated keywork, which slowly oxidizes and gathers dust over time. Yes, even if you store your oboe in your case...