Projected sound for easier dynamic contrast

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 dynamics that they’d written into the parts. After hearing another moment where the dynamics were still not quite what the director was looking for, I gave the band the idea of projected dynamics. It had an immediate positive effect on the dynamic that the band achieved, in both the loud and the soft part of the spectrum. 

Projected dynamics = easier dynamic contrast 

The secret to achieving clear dynamic contrast is making as large a contrast between the loud and soft as possible. That doesn’t mean that the loud dynamic has to be blaring and ugly, and it also doesn’t mean that the soft needs to be whispery and barely speaking. The best way to achieve contrast without sounding bad or undersupported is to think in terms of projection: how far is the sound traveling away from you? 

If the loud dynamic you produce is loud but not traveling very far away, the farther away your audience is, the less clearly they will hear the dynamic differences you create. 

The projected dynamic model takes our loud dynamics and pushes them away from us so that the softer dynamics don’t have to travel as far, thus achieving the wide dynamic contrast we’re looking for. 

(Now, do I know that this is objectively what’s happening when we play? No, I haven’t used a monitor to test the decibels in a performance space to prove this idea. I have, however, noticed that the resulting contrast in my own and student performances is greater when the performer uses this style of dynamic interpretation. This proves subjectively that the thought process at least helps performers provide a wider dynamic contrast during the performance.)

How to use projected dynamics

I recommend using spatial landmarks that are associated with each dynamic marking as you play through a passage. Identify in the space where you rehearse or practice how far you want each of the dynamic markings (f, mf, mp, p) to travel, then practice with those specific distances in mind. I’ll give you two examples that have been useful recently. 

During lessons at my home, we play in my roughly 10x10ft office. To play a really effective forte, the student imagines pushing their sound through the wall in front of them, and out through the brick wall of the apartment into the parking lot. For mezzo forte, they push the sound just through the wall in front of them into the entryway. For mezzo piano, they push the sound to the wall but not through it. For piano they keep the sound within their 3ft personal bubble. 

During lessons at the high school I mentioned at the beginning of this newsletter, the forte dynamic possibilities as a band are much greater than a single individual could manage. Forte is pushing the sound out of the band room so that the main office building can hear it. Mezzo forte is pushing the sound out of the band room so that the quad can hear it. Mezzo piano is pushing the sound just past the director’s podium, and piano is again keeping the sound within their 3 foot personal bubble space. 

As musicians are well aware - practice makes permanent. If we practice with the dynamic range that we wish to perform with, we’ll be able to rely on that air usage and dynamic level as a habit of playing.