A Report from Academia: DAILY PRACTICE FOR THE PROFESSOR OF OBOE


Charles Lehrer

Editors Note: Charles Lehrer is a member of the faculty of the University of Massachussetts at Amherst.

A recent survey, Oboe Performance Practices and Teaching in the United States and Canada, taken and compiled by James Prodan included a question about responsibilities in the oboist's teaching position. In reading the results, I found that I was not alone in having to perform many other duties beyond the teaching of oboe, playing in the faculty quintet, giving solo recitals, and coaching student ensembles.

Like my colleagues, I must spend a great amount of time to prepare for classes in music theory, music history and literature, and oboe for the music education juniors. Also, there is the unending committee work and attendance at student recitals and juries required in this profession.

How then with all of these "distractions" is it possible for me to maintain technical control of the oboe with just little more than an hour per day to practice? And how do I make every minute of that limited practice time count even when it is sometimes done at the end of the day when I am very tired?

I should like to share with you, my colleagues, the practice schedule which I have developed and which, in a word, may be described as my means of survival as an oboist in the world of academia.

The books used in my practice schedule are the following:

The aforementioned books are used as follows in the schedule for C-major/A-minor. Parts 1 through 4 of this schedule are applied to all key signatures up to and including four flats and four sharps:

Charles Lehrer's Practice Schedule

for C-major/A-minor

Day 1

Day II:

Day III:

Day IV:

The basis of my practice schedule is the diatonic scale system. I have divided the scales and studies in a given key signature (Parts 1 through 4) into four days worth. The original numbers per key signature are as follows: Salviani 16, Prestini 18, Braun 2, Ferling 12. The Prestini and Braun are set up to work together. The total cycle takes 36 days to complete, this being based upon the fact that Salviani, Prestini, and Braun carry their studies only through four flats and four sharps.

Parts 5 through 8 of my system each maintain their own infinite cycles. Giampieri repeats every 16 days and is particularly important since each study helps the oboist maintain control of the mechanism in all 12 key signatures every day. I prefer to divide the longer studies as numbers 13 and 16 into two days of practice.

The Bach Sonatas continue like the Giampieri, only movement by movement. I also study recordings of these works as I practice the separate movements. A knowledge of Baroque articulation is needed in order to play these sonatas properly since few slurs are given in the score by the composer. When I tire of playing the organ sonatas, I go on to the violin-harpsichord sonatas. At this writing, I have substituted the French Suites (upper voice} as a more challenging kind of music, particularly the realization on the oboe of the movements in Lute style. I continue to include the music of Bach in my daily practice, not only because I love it, but also because of the advice given by George Gillet in his Studies for the Advanced Teaching of the Oboe under "A Few Recommendations."

I become familiar with the repertory I will be playing in the near future through Part 8 of my schedule. This is followed with listening to recordings of the music being studied and, of course, working with the accompanist or fellow chamber music players. I then prepare excerpts of what I find difficult. I keep these excerpts listed by measure on 3 x 5 cards for daily practice in Part 7 of my system. Often I will write out the excerpts in full.

In learning new repertory in Part 8, I prefer to alternate the many historical style periods in an orderly way. The following are my divisions:

I find it important to keep these various styles continually in the process of being refreshed. For me, French Baroque ornamentation and Avant Garde 20th Century require the most attention. After that, the florid ornamentation and variations that must be written out for Italian music of the Baroque and early romantic are the most time consuming.

The time spent each day for practice varies from an hour to an hour and a half. I find I must scrape at least four reeds a week to be used exclusively for practice. l keep track of what I am practicing through the use of a card file; for each day of work there is a separate card with full information as to what was accomplished.

For example, on August 23, 1979, the card reads as follows:

A-major, F#-minor

When I practice English Horn, I substitute the following for Ferling's 144 Pralüdien und Etüden:

Ferling, Franz Wilhelm. 79 Ubungen, Op. 12. in Vade-Mecum of the Oboist. Edited by Albert J. Andraud. San Antonio: Southern Music Company, 1940. (1967 reprint).

and Luft, Johann Heinrich. 24 Etüden, Op. 1. New York: Edwin F. Kalmus, reprint c.1978.

Other studies that I like to play on the oboe in place of the Ferling "144" are the following:

Singer, Sigismondo. Methodo Teorico-Pratico, Parte VI. Milano: G. Ricordi & C., 1928. (1976 reprint).

with Mille, Karl. 25 Studien und Capricen. Leipzig: Friedrich Hofmeister Musikverlag, 1953.

Gillet, George. Studies for the Advanced Teaching of the Oboe. Paris: Alphonse Leduc, 1909. (current reprint).

with Barret, Apollon. A Complete Method for the Oboe. 15 Grande Studies. London: Boosey & Hawkes, (current reprint).

Ferling, Franz Wilhelm. 48 Etuden, Op. 31. New York: Edwin F. Kalmus, reprint c. 1978.

The studies given above fit into my scheme in Part 4: the oboist plays one Etude per day in the key being studied. On the other hand, I often depart from that method in order to enjoy practicing the following outstanding Etudes:

Luttmann, Reinhard. Twenty-one Dodecaphonic Studies. Paris: Alphonse Leduc, 1969.

Bozza, Eugene. Fourteen Studies in Karnatic Modes. Paris: Alphonse Leduc, 1973.

Bozza, Eugene. Dix-Huit Etudes. Paris: Alphonse Leduc, 1950.

I would like to end by giving a short list of sources which the oboist can pursue for advice on the art of practicing. Needless to say, all of us will in the long run develop systems based upon much of what we learned from our master teachers. In this regard, I am personally Indebted to Louis Rosenblatt, Ralph Gomberg, and to Florian Mueller, who in his 70's maintains a 45 minute daily practice schedule!

Sources for Further Reading:

Gillet, George. Studies for the Advanced Teaching of the Oboe. Paris: Alphonse Leduc, 1909. (current reprint).

Goossens, Leon and Roxburgh, Edwin. Oboe. New York: Schirmer Books, 1977.

Prodan, James. Oboe Performance Practices and Teaching in the United States and Canada. Akron: The Institute for Woodwind Research, 1979.

Rothwell, Evelyn. Oboe Technique. London: Oxford University . Press, 1953. (1974 reprint).

Singer, Lawrence. Methodo per Oboe. Milano: Edizioni Suivini Zerboni, 1969.

Sprenkle, Robert and Ledet, David. The Art of Oboe Playing. Evanston: Summy-Birchard Company, 1961.

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