F#3 a niente Test

  • by Jessi Vandagriff

    • Image of the fingering for F#3 and the note on the staff

    Play F#3 and taper to a niente (gradually fading to nothing) while remaining in tune. Try rolling out the embouchure ever so slightly to pp/ppp to extend the taper even further.

     

     

    If the reed goes sharp easily, cuts out at an unacceptable dynamic, or loses resonance and substance of tone, define thumbnail and taper to tip here:

    A graphic of a bassoon reed blade with marks indicating where to work to avoid the cornerstone of the tip of the reed

    If the reed requires too much embouchure to make the dynamic taper, very lightly brush the middle half of the reed (maintaining current tapers). Be careful not to weaken the reed too much.

    Result of These Steps: weaker, flatter, more stable, more responsive

    The material in this learning module comes from The Banana of Life: Peeling Away the Mysteries of Reed Making for the Bassoon by Rian Craypo and has been edited for clarity by Jessi Vandagriff. Please do not share or distribute this information to those not using the decision-based learning model. Used with permission.

     

    Scroll to top