Argh! I have to play piccolo on the next concert and it has been so long since I’ve put any time in on the lovely little petite member of the flute family. When I was very young, I thought playing picc was the greatest thing on earth! When I first was asked what instrument I wanted to play, I said piccolo, because it played the highest notes in the band. Of course, no one was crazy enough to let me do that, so I had to start with flute, then work my way up to piccolo. Now I consider it to be a nearly impossible task, largely because I don’t own a good instrument. (Yes, it does make a difference with piccolos)
Luckily I was able to borrow a decent instrument, and I only have to play picc on one piece, the Tannhauser Overture, so it’s no so bad. I’m looking at the whole situation as an opportunity to brush up on some skills and to try to make a good impression. Auditions for fall are coming up and I want to do well, it can’t hurt to show off a little! I started practicing by doing some tone work so I could learn the instrument’s tendencies and even out the intonation. Once I had a feel for this, I jumped into the music. I quickly noticed that I was trying to radically follow the direction of the notes with the air stream, a super big no-no on piccolo, where the strike zone is much smaller than on the flute. Minimizing this has been my biggest challenge. Practice is going pretty well except for a high G# that just won’t cooperate. I may have to just cross my toes and blow for that one.
Want to listen to Wagner’s Tannhauser Overture? I’ve posted a recording conducted by the great Herbert von Karajan. Enjoy!