From Escondido to International

People have asked me why I named my blog "Escondido Bassoon Teacher" and there are two reasons. As a 16 year old when I first started writing my blog I had two motives. The first was to make sure that when you google-searched "bassoon teacher" my blog would show up. This took a few years to actually happen, but I'm glad I did because now (years later) my blog is pretty good about popping up when you search the term "bassoon teacher. " Escondido is simply the town in which I spent the majority of my childhood.. and at age 16 I though it was important that people to know exactly where I was in case they wanted a lesson... haha 

Now that I no longer live in Escondido, I have kept the word Escondido because of something my teacher Valentin Martchev told me before I left for college. He said in a thick Bulgarian accent ; "Katie Clark, no matter where you go or how well you impress people, never forget where you came from, it will keep you stable and give you perspective."

This was coming from a man whom I respected above all else, and who practiced what he preached. So even though Escondido is a retirement center with a downtown that makes a hollow ringing sound when you step foot in it, or where you can hear peacocks and parrots every evening, or find a random buffalo next door, it will remain a part of who I am for as long as I am.

That being said, because of cutting edge technology, I am now available for lessons world wide. If you live anywhere with an Internet connection (which you'd need to read this) YOU can now take lessons from me. 

Introducing LessonFace, the most innovative technology in music lessons. Click here to see my profile!

Please message me if you would like a lesson and we'll work out a time!

Skeptical? Click here to see a demo of the amazing sound quality I got from a very old MacBook. Honestly, I am truly surprised at both the sound quality, and instant relay. It's as if I'm inside your computer! 

The password for the video is: bassoon

Please excuse my appearance, the owner of the company, named Claire, took a live recording of me fooling around on my bassoon while I was in my grungy exercise clothes right after I got back from a run, just so that I could check the sound quality of lessons before getting involved with the company. I was impressed and I think you will be too. It's much better than other video relays.

Here are some step by step instructions for getting started. Click here!

I hope to meet you soon!

How Then Shall We Practice?

As Charlie is aware,

the biggest thing upon which I like to focus in lessons is how to practice. 

Most of the time learning how to practice is the entire point of lessons. You are your best teacher, but first you need to know what is important and how to teach yourself.

I found this article interesting and helpful. It focuses on the larger game-plan aspect of practicing. 

Too often it can be overly daunting to start practicing when you know there is a lot of work to be done and it must be complete, even though you have no idea how to get it all done. 

The answer to that is to break it up and break it down. Little bits are not nearly as scary as a huge menacing mess. Once you master the little bits, just practice connecting them until you can play the whole passage. No sweat right? lol 

Although conquering obstacles is rarely easy, this checklist of questions may expedite the process:

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~In which key am I? Am I fluent in the corresponding scale/arpeggios/intervals?

~Am I in tune with myself? If not, is my pitch fixable with an adjustment to support, embouchure or my reed?

~In which meter am I? Does that affect my interpretation of the rhythms? Can I tap out my rhythms in the abstract? 

~If a passage is not clean, what interval can I isolate in my practice to fix it? If it doesn't improve with slow repetition, is there something wrong with my technique which I can see in the mirror? Is there an alternate fingering that will work better?

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As with all practice be sure to be careful and stay aware of your body. Injuries to musicians are too common and can be prevented through caution and awareness. Even non-musical activity requires awareness as injuries can occur at any time. Try to avoid undue strain or poor posture, and remember to give yourself time! 

Once I got a fortune cookie with a very helpful thought. The paper within the cookie read; 

"Infinite patience produces immediate results."

Although this isn't entirely true, patience is key to progress. It is also a virtue in which I am often found lacking... but I will say that I get a lot more done when I give myself the opportunity to delve more deeply than impatiently demanding instant perfection as I consecutively build bad repetitions. Because of this, my patience with myself has increased enormously, largely due to the fact that a patient attitude yields faster results than imprecise floundering! Go figure.