Last Entry Here

Much has happened since my last posting here, mostly because of the amount of time that has lapsed. To be honest, I've forgotten about this blog.

I have difficulty understanding business structuring practices and what is most beneficial in my situation. As a performer and a music educator, I cannot decide whether to have them as two aspects of one career, or have them being two separate entities. Up to now, I have been using two separate entities: my name Sean Hully as a performer and my business name Bird House Music as my teaching practice. I'm beginning to think that I should merge the two to be Sean Hully Music.

When I chose the name Bird House Music in 2009, I didn't want my name on the business so it could grow into a larger music school. After 10 years, that hasn't happened, and it likely will not at this point. It will be a lot of work rebranding, and this time, I should get some professional advice. I didn't really know what I was doing in this respect when I opened.

I'm not sure if rebranding is a good option or not. I'm only musing about the idea now. At any rate, I have been blogging from this page:

https://seanhully.blogspot.com

Please come follow.

You can also see the feed on www.seanhully.com. 

Thanks so much,

Sean

Easy Way or Hard Way?

Recently, I was giving a classical guitar lesson when a technical issue presented itself. Without going into details, there were at least two solutions:

(1) a simple approach of sliding the hand up the neck and holding the finger shape
(2) a more challenging approach of holding the hand in position but changing fingers

Here is my argument. While learners may benefit in the short term by using a simple solution, ultimately, it may create barriers to future development.

It is a difficult dilemma I sometimes face as a teacher. Do I let students use the easy way or make them try a more difficult way that I know will benefit them in the long term? A couple of years ago I began encouraging the more difficult path. Each time, I explain why they should try doing it the hard way and they become more receptive. Even if they don't succeed 100%, it lays some groundwork for the future.

If a student has an upcoming performance or exam, I recommend using the most comfortable technique for the sake of success. Technique needs to be constantly questioned, explored, and fine-tuned for each person and situation.

Music Exam Stress

Yesterday I took my Grade 3 guitar exam. I felt I had prepared the best I could but it did not go as well as I predicted. I was betrayed by my body.

I sat down, tuned and began the technical portion of the exam. Then adrenaline kicked in and my heart began to throb in my chest. My fingers began to tremble. As I was executing the requirements, I was trying to calm down and focus on the task but this in itself was a distraction. I slurred a D into a D# on the E major scale. A small thing but indicative of worse things to come.

The arpeggios were worse. I blanked out at the first requested pattern and had a hard time getting it going.

I did okay on the my Carulli study but my fingers were on the verge of breaking into spasms. I held it together. The next study was a disaster. It was one I felt I could play well and very musically. My heart was still pounding. I muffed the first cadence then got mixed up in the form and repeated a section. Near the end, I actually had to stop and restart to get through to the end.

My first repertoire piece was a traditional and I managed to get through it like I did the Carulli study earlier. The second piece I had to restart but settled down a bit until I messed up the ending. The third piece had similar issues.

I did fine on the remainder of the exam because I was only answering questions.

Why does adrenaline have to kick in during these performance exams? Adrenaline helps in sports but on a musical exam it hinders fine muscle controls and distracts from the music. My brain knew there was no logical reason for my body to react the way it did. I was prepared. My life was not at risk. I tried using breathing techniques but they were ineffective. Until I have mastered inner peace I don't think I will ever master music.

What Is Your Natural Tempo?

Being able to perform a piece of music competently with expression is a function of the music's technical demands and the player's skill. Each musician is faced with unique challenges that change as repertoire goals and proficiency levels change.

I often find it useful to determine my "natural tempo" for a piece of music after the technical issues have been resolved. I will basically ask myself "at what tempo can I play this piece well without feeling much stress?"

First, I play the piece without the metronome at a relaxed pace until I can execute it cleanly. This pace may be dead slow or not, depending on the music's complexity. I then reference the metronome to find my natural tempo that I can use to practise my piece. I find that jotting down the tempo with the date is helpful to note progress later on.

My natural tempo shows me how far I am from my goal in real terms. I can explore expressive elements of the piece because technique is less of a concern to me. Natural tempo can vary somewhat each day, but over time, it tends to increase organically to a certain point. At that point, I have to start pushing my tempo boundaries again so I can improve if I haven't already met my goal.

I realize that many musicians (myself included) do not have the luxury of time to learn music using the natural tempo method. However, I find this method useful when learning to play music that is of innate interest to me.

TLC for Unpromising Reeds

A couple of weeks ago I drove 150 km to a big band rehearsal to discover I forgot my reed case at my studio. I had no reeds for the rehearsal. I offered to buy a reed from the other tenor player but he refused my money and gave me one of his new reeds out of generosity.

I used his reed in the rehearsal but it was difficult to play, felt rough, and sounded stuffy. The reed was a brand that I normally use but it was one notch harder than my normal strength. Because I didn't have my reed case, I had to store it on the mouthpiece for the journey home. To no surprise, the reed dried out and warped. That is why I regularly keep my reeds in a bona fide reed case.

This morning, I tried the reed again but when I wetted it, the warping was even more severe. I took out my modest reed sanding kit consisting of No. 600 wet/dry sandpaper and a piece of 1/2" plexiglass stored in a box.

My Reed Kit

(box is clever packaging that once contained new Lucky Strike fishing lures)

To fix the reed, I placed the sandpaper on the plexiglass and gently pushed the reed across the gritty side of the sandpaper in a fluid motion away my body. This way, I am sanding with the grain. It is okay to sand when the reed is wet.

My next step was to place the reed directly onto the plexiglass, flat side down (as shown in the photo) and lightly sand the opposite side of the reed.

I repeat this two-step process except I use the smooth side of the sandpaper to buff the reed.

After I completed this sanding process, I tried playing the reed and behold, it came to life. Perhaps not all bad reeds can be saved this way but this little reed kit has saved me from prematurely discarding plenty of reeds.

Importance Of Rest and Recovery From Musical Instruments

Recently, I've been increasing my practice time on the saxophone in the morning to simply maintain my performance level. I have been using the app Music Journal religiously to document my daily routines and subjects, and it has kept me on track so far. At the same time, my gigs, rehearsals, music instruction and business has been quite demanding. On Friday, I was exhausted.

This past weekend, I decided to rest up and recover. I passively listened to music, watched movies, and did a bit work around the home. I was feeling a little guilty for not touching my saxophone but I resisted the urge to come to the studio.

This morning, I felt rested and renewed. I resumed my routine and I was surprised at the ease and fluidity of my fingers on my saxophone.

It's important to practice your musical instrument each day but sometimes you need to listen to your
body when rest and recovery is needed. Rest gives the brain time to unconsciously learn the things you've been practicing and gives the muscles time to adapt to the demands placed upon them.

Chops Maintenance

I have always found it challenging as a multi-instrumentalist to stay in shape on saxophone which is my main instrument. Teaching, arranging, listening and developing my guitar and voice technique compete for my attention, making it really easy to let my saxophone playing fall to the wayside.

During the summer of 1995, while I was on break from attending the Humber College Music Programme, I decided to learn my chords and scales using  Patterns For Jazz. I managed to get through about 75% of the book before I hit a wall with the chromatic intervals and never finished it.

A few months ago, I returned to the book fresh and started over, not with the ambition of finishing it, but with the intent to use it as a tool to simply stay in shape and to keep my mind fresh. I did have a lapse for two months but I got back on the horse again a couple of weeks ago. I am finding the iPad app Music Journal quite useful in helping me stay focused and achieving my tempo goals. I limit my time on the saxophone to about 30 minutes a day unless I have an approaching gig.

I am now on the diatonic 4th exercises which is giving me my first real challenge. I have been forced to reduce my tempo to 80 bpm so I can play them cleanly think ahead. However, it's a good exercise for the mind to learn new things, or in my case, solidify what I tried to learn 17 years ago. Gradually, my tempo on the diatonic 4th exerecises will increase so the time it will take me to finish it will reduce. I will then be able to add new exercises and delete older ones. That has been my approach to the book and it seems to be working for me.

As a result of doing these maintenance exercises, I have found that my fingers have been more fluid at my weekly rehearsal with the Big City Big Band. My embouchure also benefits because I am able to get through long, tiring infrequent rock gigs.