Category: contemporary music
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Trouble-shooting problems between composers and performers
There are several categories of potential trouble areas between composers and intstrumentalists:1) Basic orchstration mistakes2) Unfamiliarity (on either side) with a particular extended technique or effect3) Unclear notation What I am about to say may seem a bit didactic and Miss Mannerish, but really, it’s common sense. And as you may gather, I’ve had enough…
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Tips for composing and notating aeolian (air) sounds
Here are some tips on the use of air or aeolian sounds: Be sure to specify if you want these sounds: A. produced in playing position, so the air goes across the flute and produces a pitch that corresponds with the fingers (pitched air / aeolian sound), or B. produced inside the flute: i.e., if…
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The Highest Peaks: Tips for the Third and Fourth Octaves on Flute
A lot of these tips can be applied to high-register piccolo playing as well. Twentieth Century pioneers in the realms of composition and performance have set the standard for us in terms of how high we are expected to play. For better or worse, we need to have fluency at least up to high D…
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Contemporary Music : Express!
Classical Contemporary Music which is abstract, atonal or just plain impenetrable may demand something beyond the traditional idea of instrumantal expression we are taught as flutists (the use of vibrato, tonal colors, dynamics and so on). Here are some random tips on how to tap into other sources for musical ideas. Studying works that are…
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Microtonality: some basic tips
Microtonality is the use of intervals smaller than a half-step such as quarter tones, sixth tones, eighth tones and so on. There are several standard ways in which microtones are used (which may be interconnected):• As part of a “just” intonation scheme (based on pure intervals instead of equal [keyboard] temperment). Used in a simple…
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Sounds of Silence
When a composer includes silence in a solo work, it cannot tossed off as a neutral medium for spacing out notes or phrases. One has to ask, is the silence an arrested motion, or is it a mere suspension of action? Determining the type of silence one wants to create is crucial. This is why…
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Interpretation of Contemporary Music: Finding the Composer’s Voice
Familiarity with a composer’s style and esthetics is essential in preparation of music from any period. How can we go about learning these essentials when faced with music of a composer who is new to us? First, research and familiarize yourself with the composer’s other works, and perhaps more interestingly, find his/her sources of inspiration.…
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Extended Techniques: Benefits, Applications and Tips
I’d like to open with some inspiring words by Sax player Jack Wright In the early decades of free improv, when new techniques were the mark of a fresh approach to traditional instruments, they were often considered the new standard to be displayed. But at this point I find players using a more integrated technique,…