trmpt_chica

Have u ever hear an obeist who sounds like crud! and in the middle of a song he'll squak or hes not in tune with the band and totally messes up the sound of a band? well i went to an intermediate band concert and OMG! did they sound bad specially with their oboe player! like u just wanted to like cover ur ears and cringe and tell the guy that he sounds like poo but this guy was really cocky and was all like geez no need to get jealous over my playing...His playing? HIS playing? HIS PLAYING?!??!?! more like just blowing into a piece of wood. but thank goodness our oboe player in advance band had played for four yrs and was in an adult band cause he was like one of the best sounds ive ever heard..after the trumpet of corse...just thought i would tell u this to watch out for some cruddy obeist not saying all are like that its just a few are...

RichN

My wife's an oboe player. She hasn't played in an orchestra for ten years, and only takes it out of its case 4-5 times a year, but can still play rings around me and sounds beautiful. How does that work? It's really upsetting.

Rich.

trmpt_chica

Im sorry sir i didnt say i wasnt talking about your wife its just that in like junior high and sometimes high school many obeist believe their good but its really upsetting when like the teacher just moves them up in band cause they need an obesist just to compete in a festival. its really like makes the band sound bad. Im talking about All obesist its just like it makes me mad when teachers will do that and when our advance band obeist tried to talk to the intermediate one, he totally blew the advance band one off. But many obeist are very good, if they love the instrument i say more power to them. and i wish your wife all the best since i heard the oboe is very hard to play and i would love to play it except i dont have the right like emborchure for it.

RichN

Hey, don't worry, no ofence taken. When I was at school, it was the flute players that had this problem!

Rich.

Dave Payn

I've heard plenty of 'cruddy' performances from trumpeters, French hornists, trombonists, violinists, singers, clarinettists, etc. etc. etc. I've been playing trumpet 31 years and on a bad day, I can squawk with the best of 'em.... ;)

ScreaminRaider

In the Oboe's defense....Those things are hard to tune to begin with. That is why most ensembles will tune to the oboe.

I have and still spleeeah with the best of em. We all have those nights that make you cringe, but don't want to admit it at the time.

How do you get 2 oboes to tune?
Shoot one

trickg

Like, I don't think like the band director like is putting them on the part with like the intention of making the band like sound bad. Like, sometimes its better to like, make sure all of the like parts are covered and like, oboe is a tough instrument, so like, give them a break, like, ok? And like, could it be possible like, that maybe your band director, like, knows something that you don't and like, maybe by putting a player on a part that is like, challenging, like it gives the like mediocre oboist like something to strive for with the hope of like, improving.

Forgive me if I'm not taking your post very seriously, however, while I understand that this is an internet forum and correct grammar, spelling and punctuation aren't absolutely necessary, when I see a post with a blatant disregard for the aforementioned writing attributes, I can't help but to take it less seriously than I would if the post was well written.

Getting back to the subject of your less than stellar oboists, many times high school students tend to forget that band class is not always about achieving the highest performance standards. Sometimes it's about simply exposing students to music, and giving them the opportunity to be part of something bigger than themselves, even if they aren't the best of players. I can only stress to put trust and faith in your band director. Not only have they been in your current position at some point in their past, they also have the benefit of 4+ years of higher education and the experience that goes with it. In many ways they have "been there, done that" so to speak, and have an experienced viewpoint from which they can draw when contemplating certain decisions that affect the students they teach, and the ensembles they put together.

My advice to you would be to worry less about the oboe players and worry more about your part in the whole scheme of things. Also, there are many word processing applications that have grammar and spell check - it might not hurt to check into them.

Manny Laureano

Trumpet Chica must feel like the girl that is brought up by a platoon of soldiers in Donizetti's opera "The Daughter of the Regiment"! In that opera, a baby girl is orphaned but then adopted by a regiment of French soldiers, so she has about 24 fathers!

The good news is that they love her very much and are faced with letting go of her when the hero (what's his name?) shows up, falls in love with her, sings an aria with nine, count'em, nine high C's and everybody lives happily ever after.

ML

tpter1

I am a big believer in the teaching power of experience. There is a lesson in that bad oboe player ruining the concert for you, Chica. There are many.

How much do you think attitude has to do with one's playing? Examine the best players for their ego (are they conceited?) or humility (are they humans who know they are not perfect and admit their errors?)

What does this say about personal preparation for a performance and personal contribuition to an ensemble? (Who is the most important member of a group?)

As TrickG mentioned above, a public school performing group is NOT the Minnesota Symphony, NY Phil or other professional organization. Its mission is completely different, in fact. Yes, we all want to hear music rendered in a way that is honest, touches us, is in tune, has good blend within the ensemble, instruments that sound the way they are supposed to and has the right notes at the right times. This is a very important part of playing; but that's not all. What reasons might the director have had (other than competition festivals) to put that oboist in that position?

I've been known to crash and burn miserably. (Yes, in performance, and both as a player and conductor; also as a teacher). I think we all have nightmare stories to tell. It is the lessons contained in those stories that is important; even more important is how we deal with them or whether we are human enough to see them or choose to ignore them.

Young Grasshopper...

jcstites

Well, having a little sister that is an oboist and a dad that is a band director i think i may be able to shed some light on this.

Oboe is extremely hard, ever tried to play one? From my expereience students progress alot slower on oboe than other intruments. Not always, but most of the time. My sister sounded like a duck until the last year or so.

In high school bands it is very hard to find double reeds. Middle school directors usually do not push these, alot of times because they are hard, and dont know how to teach them properly.

Sy my dad, usually turns flute or sax player into double reeds. Works out ok by the senior year, but those first years are pretty bad.

HS band is a learning experience, not a pro ensemble....