Woodwinds

Expectations for all FMHS Reed Players

You are responsible for owning and maintaining your own reeds.
- Reed players should have at least five reeds in a rotation to allow multiple reeds to be performance ready.
  - This will also allow your reeds to have a longer lifespan resulting in the purchase of fewer reeds.
  - There will be a reed sale through the local music stores which will allow for a greater savings.
Each reed player should purchase a swab specific to their instrument and swab their instrument at the end of each rehearsal. This action will allow the pads to last longer and result in a great financial savings and lengthen the life of the instrument.

Colonel Thomas Palmatier, commander and leader of the United States Army Band, "Pershing's Own," has put together a comprehensive list of performers you should be listening to in order to have what he calls a "sound image" to provide guidance towards your perfect sound. You'll not want to miss out on the Colonel's "Sound Like This" page!

General information sheet with recommended solos, studies, and instruments if you're looking for stepping up to a better model.
Excellent resource for checking your flute fundamentals. Help troubleshoot your sound, and check your technique.
Gemeinhardt fingering chart for Flute and Piccolo. Includes trills.
Thinking of upgrading your instrument? Check out this video to for guidance regarding what to look for as well as some of the models available for your next step up: Genifer Dusold/Brighton Music Center Flute Video
Nestor Herszbaum's website is a great reference for flute and piccolo players looking for resources to take them above and beyond.
Here's a link to an app that gives you flute fingering charts at your fingertips! Free app Includes alternative fingerings and trills.
The Top 10 Flute Players you should know, according to cmuse.org. Includes videos of the masters at work!
Here's a link to Dr. Hasan's webpage. This is another great resource full of recordings, videos, and instruction from our guest clinician at Western Illinois University.
Here's another great blog about creating the perfect flute tone.

Your all inclusive clarinet resource can be found here at The-Clarinets. Includes their list of the best clarinet players of all time.
General information sheet with recommended solos, studies, and equipment for those looking to stepping up their sound.
Really cool interactive fingering chart from Yamaha. Includes link to download a fingering chart pdf.
Comprehensive fingering chart for trills on the clarinet. Just trill the key/finger in red.
Confused on how to pick those pesky alternate fingerings? Check out this resource on Four Rules for Picking the Best Fingering on the Clarinet.
And here are some exercises to help flow through alternative pinky fingerings.
Illustration of the parts of a mouthpiece for reference.
Illustration of the parts of a reed. Excellent resource if you're interested in working on perfecting your sound through shaping your reeds.
Another great resource for those of you getting serious about reed use. This chart compares the hardness of reeds from a variety of brands.
Julian Bliss is one of the most prolific young clarinetists of our time. Definitely worth checking out!

General information sheet with recommended solos, studies, and equipment for those looking to stepping up their sound.
Very cool interactive fingering chart from Yamaha. Just put down the keys that are red. Includes additional resources as well!
Altissimo Fingering Chart - Looking to expand your range? This fingering chart will help guide you as you develop the proper technique to hit those high notes.
Here's the website for Dr. Sarah Roberts, who came for a Master Class with our saxophones. A great resource from a real home-town musical hero!
Unheard of Instruments: The US Army Field Band's Saxophone Section visits Dr. Paul Cohen, collector of rare saxophones, to check out his unique collection.
List of the 20 Greatest Saxophone Players Of All Time according to LA Weekly. Includes video recordings from this list of jazz and rock legends.
Check out Classical-Music.com's list of the the Six of the Best Classical Saxophonists of All Time. Also includes recordings from the masters.
Watch Leo P (Leo Pellegrino) bring the Bari Sax to the center spotlight in this unforgettable performance at the BBC Proms. You can also check out this incredible Bari Sax Master perform with Lucky Chops and Too Many Zooz.
What happens when you utilize just about every special saxophone technique possible in just one song? Not enough you say? What about if you add singing and beatboxing - and what if it were played by just one person? You get this incredible performance from Derek Brown.

Bandworld's Online Resource for Oboists. Exercises, outlines, and fingering charts too!
General overview of the Oboe for beginners. Written as a presentation outline for educators, but still informative.
Insight on the English Horn and Oboe with recommendations for reeds, solos, etudes, and instrument models for stepping up your sound.
Musical Giants of the 20th Century highlights of several of the world's best Oboists. Includes recordings from the masters.

General overview of the English Horn for beginners. Written as a presentation outline for educators, but still informative.
Insight on the English Horn and Oboe with recommendations for reeds, solos, etudes, and instrument models for stepping up your sound.
Highlight of the English Horn (Cor Anglais) from the Vienna Symphonic Library. Includes a few recordings of the instrument in action.
Members of the Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra demonstrate the similarities and differences between the English Horn and the Oboe.

Bassoon Essentials - Offers recommendations for reeds, solos, etudes, and instrument models for those looking to step up their sound.
Bassoon Fingering Chart - a few additional resources included.
Comprehensive guide for the beginning bassoonist - particularly one who converts from playing clarinet.
Dr. Jason Worzbyt of Indiana University of Pennsylvania provides these two resources for bassoonists.
- Bassoon Survival Kit - "Mysteries of the Bassoon Revealed!"
- A Guide to Bassoon Reed Making - for those of you ready to start making your own bassoon reeds for maximum results.
How is that 3rd space Eb sounding? Here is a quick fix for allowing that note to sing like the rest of the instrument.
Guide of necessary tools and equipment for making your own reeds.
Insight on how to shape your reed for optimized tone.
List of Bassoon Recording Artists to research for listening examples.
Orchestral Works that feature the bassoon prominently.
Four talented Bassoonists from the Eastman School of Music have formed a mega-star bassoon quartet called The Breaking Winds. Their website is full of information about the group, as well as videos of a few of their highly entertaining and impressive performances.