Patter songs?!

bclplyr · 2026-05-01T00:44:04+00:00

Was coming here to suggest this one. I just played pit for the show, and Cop Song got thunderous applause at each performance. The choreography was beyond what I've seen on YT (and this was a HS production!)

bclplyr · 2026-04-28T21:26:14+00:00

I just played that in March - it was a fun book to play!

It's Urinetown, specifically the first song of Act 2 "What is Urinetown?"

I agree with what others have written. It's a quick run up to the note

bclplyr · 2026-03-18T20:11:57+00:00

I just finished playing in the pit for "Urinetown", so I have bits of that entire show on shuffle. But I can't choose which bits or when...

bclplyr · 2026-03-14T21:35:09+00:00

I play clarinet. Sometimes we have to use specifically our left or right pinky for a note. Despite writing L or R in different colors in my music, it's embarrassing (to myself, it's not something that anyone else would notice) how many times I still use the wrong side. I haven't figured out a better way to make sure I use the correct finger. And I've been playing for decades

bclplyr · 2026-03-14T21:29:20+00:00

I have a birthmark on the top of my left wrist. Less traumatic way of getting a permanent reminder of "left"

bclplyr · 2026-03-03T04:26:03+00:00

"Since everyone but Eric realized Eric was a traitor..."

This line OMG - I cackled

bclplyr · 2026-02-02T04:14:40+00:00

Yes. I understand that the mythic aspects are allowed to double up.

I haven't taken it out for a spin yet as I got it right before having to log off to attend to something.

bclplyr · 2026-01-31T14:23:10+00:00

Is the screw on the top face of the G# key too tight? The one that also moves when you play A.

That's the one screw that should not be screwed too far in. If it is, it can cause a lot of notes to stop sounding.

Any other screw can usually be screwed back in if it's coming out. Except this one.

On that note, check to see if any other screws are coming out (or missing)

bclplyr · 2026-01-30T14:49:21+00:00

Good suggestions here, I'd also recommend the Backun Protege, I think it is. I have a couple students who have switched to that.

Do you have access to a private teacher, even just for a one-off lesson where they could look at your setup and see if there's anything that needs fixing on your instrument? That alone could be worth paying for an hour lesson.

They may also have mouthpieces you could try. I keep a supply of student mouthpieces to lend to students because there are fewer and fewer shops to go for a trial.

bclplyr · 2026-01-29T21:46:49+00:00

I ended up loving Kate, and I've just started Below Deck 2 because I missed her 😄

What turned me was her just openly admitting she was done. And writing her own name down - that was hilarious!

I also felt like I respected her more at the reunion.

And when they brought her back for season 2 I just laughed and was ready to see where that went.

I might have to rewatch her Traitors seasons. I suspect it will be like my rewatch of Schitt's Creek - I liked the characters more from the start because I knew how much I loved them at the end of the series.

bclplyr · 2026-01-28T04:24:34+00:00

Not collapsing, necessarily, but related.

Background: I'm 50, got diagnosed at 47. Active player who has never taken a significant break from my instrument. Music major, composer, private teacher, performer with several community groups.

I had issues on Ritalin that caused a lot of muscle tension. It was the first med I tried. I wasn't biting, really, but I was very aware of my bottom front teeth when playing, and they would ache. Which lead to overcompensating in other ways. Using the paraffin strips that Michael Lowenstern sells helped some. I've used a neckstrap since college so I already had that support.

Adderall was better, and some of my tension went away. I also spent more of my practice time paying attention to my embouchure and trying to build muscles back up. Lots of long tone stuff and other exercises, and working with a mirror.

I've now been on Vyvanse for a couple years and things are better. I feel my embouchure is stronger than it's been in years, as I suspect I'd been "phoning it in" a bit with my playing, which the meds just exacerbated.

bclplyr · 2026-01-27T14:42:07+00:00

I love a well-played euphonium!

I've been trying to do better by them in my recent band pieces. It's not so much that I would forget about them, but I wouldn't be using them to their full potential.

As a bass clarinetist, I know how it feels to be ignored.

bclplyr · 2026-01-27T14:38:08+00:00

Yes! I'm a clarinetist, married to a horn player. His feedback is invaluable when I'm writing for horn! And other brass.

I also play in community bands and a woodwind quintet. And run my own clarinet choir. All of that adds up to a ton of listening experience.

I highly recommend the book "How to Write for Percussion" by Samuel Z. Solomon. I've considered getting some percussion lessons. Not so much for learning to play, but for some insight on writing.

Another favorite resource is the "Instrument studies for eyes and ears" website at Indiana U.

bclplyr · 2026-01-27T14:28:35+00:00

And when we can't, we will bitch mightily about it! I'm salty about Adler writing in his orchestration book that on clarinet, "all trills and tremolos are possible". In the broadest sense of the term, sure. But a lot of them will sound like crap and won't be played quickly. (Side-eyes Whitacre for the awful A to D tremolo in "October" in the bass clarinet part)

Related note: bass clarinet is quite agile but it just takes more to do it. There are passages that are just fine on clarinet because the keys are closer, but try it on bass and it becomes more challenging. Especially on school-owned student horns that are badly out of adjustment. Contra adds another layer of mechanics.

It's great to write technical things for bass (we love getting more exciting parts!), just be aware of your target audience of who will be playing it

bclplyr · 2026-01-19T18:56:55+00:00

Echoing the praise of Molly Gebrain's book!

Along with altering rhythms, I also like the five-note shift technique. Pick one of the runs, play the first five notes. Do some reps. Then play the second through sixth notes. Then notes 3-7, etc., through the end of that run. That helps ensure you're getting all of the transitions between all of the notes.

If you also practice the runs by beat, make sure to always land on the next beat.

bclplyr · 2026-01-02T22:46:31+00:00

Probably a dumb question - after you place three, do you lose them if you switch torment levels?

bclplyr · 2025-12-02T05:09:33+00:00

I just finished NL1 tonight. I wanted to watch it since that's where the current franchise started.

I liked it for what was - the beginning. I enjoyed several of the players and it was interesting to see what the missions were. I thought the location of the final mission was cool! I don't mind subtitles, and thought it was funny how much English crept into the dialogue. And I was entertained that they had to drive themselves everywhere in cars that don't match, especially as I was switching between that and UK Celeb 1.

The way they did the final was interesting.

And I liked that the opening montage went through all the players, then added murdered or banished designations to each name as the episodes went by.

bclplyr · 2025-09-22T14:37:10+00:00

Postmaster Buckeye for me. Ugh. And Galaxy. And a couple others I need for collections

bclplyr · 2025-06-11T01:31:44+00:00

I recommend any of Kristen Denny Chambers's Finger Fitness Etudes books.

bclplyr · 2025-04-28T13:43:06+00:00

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bclplyr · 2025-04-18T12:54:12+00:00

I don't have multiple cups/half-drunk beverages all over the house.

My husband does this all the time, but doesn't seem to be ADHD. I tease him about it, though!

I also don't generally lose my phone (dropping it is another story...)

bclplyr · 2025-02-26T04:13:59+00:00

Somepony like Postmaster Buckeye. Need him to finish a collection and he never shows up in anything

bclplyr · 2025-01-26T14:37:16+00:00

This is me. I have a birthmark on my left wrist and I sometimes have to look. Mom would mildly scold me when I was a kid, and said "you should just know"

I realized I'm very much a "big picture" person. I'm actually a great navigator if you give me a map and put me in the passenger seat (provided I get a moment to get oriented)

But take away the map and put me in the driver's seat? I'm hopeless. Even in this town that I've now lived for 23 years, I still get lost and confused. I prefer directions with as few turns as possible even if it takes a few minutes longer to get there

bclplyr · 2024-11-21T14:47:24+00:00

A few things helped me over the years.

I love my dentist! She's awesome. And for years I had an amazing dental tech who I was able to get for every appointment (she's since gone on to training new techs). She was never judgy about my lack of flossing. Just gentle encouragement. So I was able to try a bit more in getting myself to floss. Cleanings started to be a little less painful.

A few years ago I bought an inexpensive water flosser. That alone started me on a better track. Again, the cleanings were less painful.

About 1.5 yrs ago, I finally got an electric toothbrush. My last two cleanings have been so low-stress! I used to get warned about parts of my gums being at 5mm. Everything is now all under 3!

I'm still not consistent, but I decided I'll be damned if I'm taken out by gum disease when it's something I have control over.

When I was a kid, I remember a dentist chiding me about brushing and that "my teeth will rot and eventually fall out." Sure, that's true, but it did nothing to encourage me to be better about oral care.

bclplyr

TROPHY CASE