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What did you practice today?

Ed

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Tonight I spent most of my time doing mundane things like mowing the lawn and folding laundry. My quick bit of practicing entailed what I call "creative time". It's not noodling. It is all about creating melodies and phrases that are original. No licks allowed.

Did anyone else practice today?
 
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Practiced a duet

Our community band is preparing for the last concert of the season (before the summer break). Tonight was rehearsal night, so the only practicing I did today other than that was on the duet I'll be doing at the concert: an adaptation of Duet #2 in F Major (BWV 803) from Clavierübung Volume III by J.S. Bach, for clarinet and bass clarinet (me). A fun piece.

(The director has given our little clarinet group some time at the concert to play a few short pieces; the others are trios, which I'll get back to practicing tomorrow. They're much easier.)
 
The blues band I work in had rehearsal last night. Our bass player was missing--his daughter was receiving a school award--so it was just the 4 of us: guitar, drums, keys, & me. We decided to hack through some new tunes and pick out some new ones so we could throw together a couple of new sets.
 
In reaction to a frustrating rehearsal (bad intonation in the sax section) last evening with one of the community bands I play with, I used the limited time I had this AM to do some long tones and scales with "The Tuning CD". After that I spent some time working up a long time favorite tune from memory and ear. (I'm a good reader, but haven't done much with playing by ear and from memory). Then I went off to my weekend "gig"------pouring wine and schmoozing with customers at a local winery.
 
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Among other things, I dug out "The Breathing Gym" (by Sam Pilafian and Patrick Sheridan, available at focus-on-music.com and fine bookstores everywhere.) These old lungs benefit greatly from periodic breathing excercises, and this book is among the best for that purpose.
 
I have about twelve tenor sax solos for the Dissonance jazz xTet gig tomorrow, four of which are new. I spent some time with one of my instructors getting a couple of licks for each. But my hardest solo will the limelighted in the MJB concert at Big Daddy's next week.

It's the alto solo in Quincy Jone's "How Sweet it Is". Unfortunately I nailed it in practice last week, using the palete of ideas from my improv instructor. Now I have to duplicate that success with Darren Motamedy playing lead tenor next to me both for the last practice and at the gig. No stress there!
 
Actually two days ago and I am going to stretch the concept of practice.

I was at a wedding a the band had a bari player. I listened to him and thought about what I liked about his approach and what I didn't like about his approach. The same with tone. I then compared his playing and approach with mine and thought about areas that I felt worked well for me and areas that I was coming up short.

It was a great way to pass some time at the wedding and I came away feeling pretty good about my own approach but also had some mental notes about things to continue to work on.
 
I luv to steal great licks, but there are so many. Voicings, now that's a little harder to cop. I'm headed to lessons soon to work on my one solo for the gig this week. I've been practicing "Too Close For Comfort" by Gordon Goodwin's Phat Pack. It has nice but hard licks for the sax soli's.
 
I'm practicing slide saxophone and it's probably the most difficult horn I ever tried. I'm a complete novice.

I keep bugging my trombone player friends about slide lubricant. They think I'm nuts.

And they might have a point.
 
Bach cello suite No2 BWV 1008-1(Prelude)

On bass clarinet

Chris
For what it's worth, it's harder on bass clarinet than on baritone sax :D.

Practice? Well, considering that I'm finally at a point where singing for more than 10 seconds causes my head to split into two, I did a bit of sing-along with The Beatles "White Album". Yes, I'm a bass. No, I can't go quite as high as Lennon, McCartney or Harrison. That doesn't mean I can't try :D.

Groove, they should have slide oil readily available. I don't see how it'd be terribly different.
 
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