Fluteland.com Flute Message Board

Bo · Joined: 15 Sep 2008 Posts: 200 Location: Down Under

What do you think is the best way to practice fast cadenzas so that they sound very light, almost ethereal?

Thanks! Smile

Bo

Zevang · Joined: 24 Jul 2006 Posts: 203

Although a bit late I try to give you some words about this.
Your question may be of a generic type, without pointing exactly what is your doubt, but reading it today ocurred to me that in fact what is needed to accomplish your desire is just a matter of applying the basics of any practice. Just start very slow, let your fingers learn the lesson and gradually, and absolutelly not in a rush, give it some speed. With some time you will sure notice improvement and the velocity may get higher until at some point you reach the level you want.

Bo · Joined: 15 Sep 2008 Posts: 200 Location: Down Under

Thank you for the advice, Zevang. Very Happy

I have actually (slightly) improved since I posted my original message.
I have been playing the flute for only 3 years, and there are probably techniques that only reach perfection with time. But I start to feel more (although not completely) satisfied with my cadenzas.... Razz

Zevang · Joined: 24 Jul 2006 Posts: 203

You know, it's a funny thing. It happens to me from time to time. When I take that old peace I've played many years ago, it sounds so better now and it seems also much more mature to me.
Maybe we're just like a good wine... Smile

I'm not telling you that you should sit and wait time pass though. I agree that it takes lots of work, pacience and constant dedication to continue improving. Just that it seems we can't feel this happening, because it's essentially a gradual process.

Bo · Joined: 15 Sep 2008 Posts: 200 Location: Down Under

Yes, that is so true.
Sometimes I have noticed, also for other instruments, that a piece was not that perfect yet, and after 6 months or 1 year, even without practicing THAT piece, it gets better... Which means that one has overall improved... Cool

I have also noticed that at the beginning one progresses faster, or maybe the progress is just more noticeable... Later one notices less (after attaining a certain level), but one STILL progresses....

stewyflute13 · Joined: 29 Apr 2009 Posts: 80 Location: New Mexico

Totally agree. Breaks give us the freshness we need to play well. I think breaks are especially valuable for 'mental blocks' and breathing phrases that seem to last forever. For example, I couldn't seem to play the Mendelssohn Scherzo from a midsummer night's dream solo 2 yrs ago and then just picked it up a few days ago and played through it about 4 times, making the breath every time. I was so shocked that I could NOT PRACTICE something for quite a long time, and then just pick it up and do it, especially considering that I couldn't do it before. I think it's a combination of rest (which is good for us), psychological renewal, and overall improvement through work on other things, which of course improves all areas of our playing.

Stewyflute

stewyflute13 · Joined: 29 Apr 2009 Posts: 80 Location: New Mexico

Btw, i became so confident in this solo that I decided I would play it at a masterclass the very next day (I am at a summer music program right now)
The teacher, a principal flutist in a major orchestra, asked the question "how can we go about achieving such a difficult phrase such as in this excerpt?" and i gave him an honest reply- "Well I just put it down for 2 years and when I picked it up again somehow I could just do it" How he responded was very interesting: He said "That's why I don't practice." Lol!

I'm not saying practicing is bad, and obviously people who have been playing for 30 years can practice less because they have so much experience/ knowledge, but I think he was trying to make a point- Sometimes practicing only gets in our way! Haha, kind of a philosophical idea, but interesting to think about at the very least....

fluttiegurl · Joined: 10 Dec 2004 Posts: 796

I had a very bad experience as an undergrad in college that led me to take some time off from playing (almost 2 years). When I returned to it, not only did I actually play better, I realized that for the first time ever, I was playing for myself. I know, a little off the subject. Anyway, I am a strong believer in practice (daily if at all possible), but I also think there is a time to move to something else for a while when a piece is not getting better. When I go back to a piece, it is fresher and makes more sense.

Bo · Joined: 15 Sep 2008 Posts: 200 Location: Down Under

I think sometimes, if it is not the "right moment" for us, it is actually counterproductive to play a piece repeatedly or be too obsessed with it, as we learn the wrong technique, possibly also the wrong mood.