Hello! It's Citlalmina here today 👋🏼 ...The leaves are changing colors in Cincinnati, fall vibes are here (hello, pumpkin spice everything, everywhere) and now school is feeling more settled. So, I'm curious how many of you are planning a performance, project or recital, either for school or on your own?

In one of my arts admin classes this semester, we're reading a book called The Art of Relevance by Nina Simon . I am especially captivated by the idea of truly capturing what's relevant for me and the audience I want to reach. With a recital and competition coming up, it's been a timely and inspiring study. (By the way, Simon presents a TEDx Talk on YouTube you might find interesting to watch).

It's all about how to capture people's attention enough to get them to engage. It can be a cause, a museum, or... it can be your next performance.

While Simon's book really centers on how mission-driven organizations can matter more to more people, these questions can apply to our lives too. When planning a recital program, getting people to come to your concert, or even getting your audience to feel pulled into what you are presenting in your next performance.

Here are some questions that you can ask yourself when planning and preparing for your own future performances.

• Who your audience will be?
• What kind of message/music do you want to share with your audience?
• What is your motive to share this program?
• Do you think this music will matter to your audience?
• How would you make your audience care about your program?

It's one of these things that we can often overlook, but so worth giving some thought!

Alright, we can't have a clarinet email without a clarinet concept! Here's something I've been working on in lessons, and something you can try in your practice today:

I am sure this word is written in many spots in your music because we know that it is the motor of our playing, but ....do we really need a lot of air in the places we write it down? or it is more about the air flow we need to approach the phrasing we want?

Here's a great air exercise to help you discover how much air you really need in a certain phrase:

1.- Sing that phrase slowly giving the shape you want, it doesn’t have to be a perfect pitch.

2.- Then blow through the clarinet keeping the singing in mind and doing it as relaxed as possible. You might need to breathe more than once but don't lose the shape you want.

3.- As you do this, listen to the sung notes: it should be very close to the real tone. If it's flat, it's likely you're not supporting enough, and you might be trying to exert control with the throat! While you're at it, check the tongue position as well.

4.- If this happens, do some inhale and exhale through the mouth just to check everything is relaxed and come back to step 2.

5.- If needed check the air you need for each note, making it sound then leave only the air, feel that air. Breathe and start only with that air and then let the note sound.

6.- Play the phrase again slowly, keeping everything relaxed, and aim for the real tempo when you feel comfortable.

I hope you found this helpful! Try it and let us know how that felt! We always love to hear from you :)

Have a great week!

Citlalmina

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