shamisen

[nico storm]

A little question out of left field, does anyone know of anywhere, either online or in the real world, that sells shamisen. Over the last few months I 've been trying to hunt one down, Im getting bored of the 6 and 12 strings of my current axes, and need a new challenge!

[JoDuncan]

Check out this dude...

http://stores.ebay.co.uk/Japanese-Culture-Shop-1piece

[Kaoru]

JoDuncan-san,

What was all that? I looked and no shamisen were there. He wanted to buy one. None of those were shamisen. Shamisen are traditional Japanese musical stringed instruments that have only 3 strings.

Here Nico-san... This is where you can buy one:

http://www.kotosandmore.com/

---------------------

And, on e-bay:

http://search.ebay.com/search/search.dll?from=R40&_trksid=m37&satitle=shamisen&category0=

If you get one, don't forget to get a plectrum(Triangle-like in shape. A little hard to describe properly without a photo.) to play it with.

Hope that helps, and good luck with learning it. You should try to find a teacher if you can...

Kaoru

[ScottUK]

You should try to find a teacher if you can... Naah, he can learn from online videos like we learned our iai & kenjutsu... ;)

[JoDuncan]

JoDuncan-san,

What was all that? I looked and no shamisen were there. He wanted to buy one. None of those were shamisen. Shamisen are traditional Japanese musical stringed instruments that have only 3 strings.
...

Kaoru

Kaoru San, or Kaoru... isn't Kaoru San someone else... my brain just leaked out my nose... no wait, it was just bogies.

Keep in mind that nothing remains the same for very long. Obviously the shamisen that were in stock were sold! Or... i pasted the wrong link ;) :p hehe

I know what they are!! :)

[nico storm]

Just saw the new posts, sorry I thought this thread had died.

The link did indeed originally have a link on that was very useful, thanks Kaoru for the second one, I think I found that one when doing a little deeper digging, I know of 2 places to get some tutoring, only problem is that one is a full time world music degree, and the other is in scotland (quite a way to travel). As Scott says I can just learn from the internet, it hasnt harmed my JSA practice. (Keeps head down, and is glad he's not at club tonight):ponder:

[JoDuncan]

Contrary to popular belief you CAN teach yourself a musical instrument.

[ScottUK]

it hasnt harmed my JSA practiceHehe explains a lot.

[nico storm]

Hehe explains a lot.

Touché sir :ko:

[nico storm]

Contrary to popular belief you CAN teach yourself a musical instrument.

True, true, learning the guitar without a teacher wasn't too bad, tab books got me so far, and once I'd grasped the heavenly invention of "the power chord" everything else was pretty easy to grasp.

I think the Shamisen however might be a little different. Learning the guitar with a good knowledge of western rock music, an idea of the kind of music I wanted to be able to play, and easy access to books and and the internet with laods of helpful hints, not to mention a good group of friends who also played, is a little different to learning a instrument which I do not have a deeper connection too.

[Kaoru]

Kaoru San, or Kaoru... isn't Kaoru San someone else... my brain just leaked out my nose... no wait, it was just bogies.


Ahahahaha!! That was very funny! Ummm... I don't think a brain can leak out by itself... You need those hooks the Egyptians used to use to pull the brain out through the nose when they were preparing the mummify the person that died, in order to get it to come out through the nose. (That's true by the way. Gross, but true!)

Keep in mind that nothing remains the same for very long. Obviously the shamisen that were in stock were sold! Or... i pasted the wrong link ;) :p hehe hehehe, Oh yeah, I'd forgotten about that... Sorry! I dunno how I didn't even consider that.

I know what they are!! :)Well, that's good to know! :D

Just saw the new posts, sorry I thought this thread had died.

The link did indeed originally have a link on that was very useful, thanks Kaoru for the second one, I think I found that one when doing a little deeper digging.


You're welcome! :)

I know of 2 places to get some tutoring, only problem is that one is a full time world music degree, Being that I majored in music and have a Bachelor of Music in classical percussion performance(One reason I like kendo so much! I get to hit things that make cool noises that are on people, who are fun to hit too. :D ) from a music conservatory, I can tell you that you do not need to get a degree in music just to take lessons from a university instructor. Many teachers at my school taught outside of the conservatory, a small handfull of students.

All you need to do is, call the school's music department if it's a regular university or college and find out who teaches Shamisen. Then, you need to get the teacher's number if they'll give it to you. They may be willing to give you their home phone, but these days, that is less common. They will be willing to give you their office number for sure, instead. Then, you need to call and if you don't get the teacher personally, leave a message explaining who you are and what you want learn and give your phone number. They should call you back. If they do not call you back within a couple days, you need to try again until you reach them. College and conservatory music teachers are busy pros who have a hectic schedule, so give them a little room to get back to you. But, be persistent. That means you are serious about learning something.

So, don't just decide it's not possible to get a teacher.

and the other is in scotland (quite a way to travel). Uh, yeah... That's a bit TOO far! :D


As Scott says I can just learn from the internet, it hasnt harmed my JSA practice. (Keeps head down, and is glad he's not at club tonight):ponder:

Contrary to popular belief you CAN teach yourself a musical instrument.

Ok, I have to reply to both of you, and I'm gonna say the same thing anyway if I post seperately, so I'll just say it once.

I don't like it it when people try to teach themselves an instrument, to be honest. I mean, you can do it, if you don't expect to be good at it or learn things correctly. It's just like learning kendo off the internet or with a video.

However... You will never have proper technique and it will be VERY hard to advance if you never get yourself a teacher. I've seen some really terrible technique from self taught people and they nearly always have a small range of what they can do and most can't read music, which really hinders learning. For example, there is more to playing guitar than simple chords and strumming on a guitar. A LOT more. Both my uncles are professional musicians and both play guitar as part of their work.

You just can't teach yourself proper technique because a teacher needs to be there to correct you when you do it wrong. And, if you never have lessons, how the heck will you even understand the difference between correct and incorrect technique and learn complicated things on your instrument?

So, it's not la di da, I can teach myself X and do it right. No, it's going to be, I could teach myself this, but I will develop bad habits that will need correcting when I find a teacher.

It's just the same as learning a JSA. If you hope to learn an instrument correctly and well, a person should take lessons from a qualified teacher who is not self-taught.

So, a person could just goof off and teach oneself for fun if they don't want to work in the business, but they should not try to go farther without a teacher if they decide to get serious about playing.

So, maybe this is all a bit too much, but I just disagree with you, that's all. I can't help it, coming from the background I have in music.

When a person is trained, mistakes and bad technique are VERY easy to hear and see and it can be really annoying... it's hard to ignore them.

True, true, learning the guitar without a teacher wasn't too bad, tab books got me so far, and once I'd grasped the heavenly invention of "the power chord" everything else was pretty easy to grasp.


That's just the tip of the iceberg. Just imagine what you could do and learn if you had lessons and learned to read music! :)


I think the Shamisen however might be a little different. Learning the guitar with a good knowledge of western rock music, an idea of the kind of music I wanted to be able to play, and easy access to books and and the internet with laods of helpful hints, not to mention a good group of friends who also played, is a little different to learning a instrument which I do not have a deeper connection too.Might be?? Try a LOT harder. It's got only 3 strings remember... And, you have to learn the correct way to hold it, how to correctly hold the plectrum that you use to play it, how to correctly hold the left hand and move the fingers to play it, how to properly sit to play it, read the music, etc. etc.... It's more complicated than you think.
Lessons would be a good idea, imho. :)

Where do you live? Maybe I can help you out finding a teacher? Musicians generally know how to find each other when they want to.

Anyway, enough of the lecture, hahaha... It's a cool instrument. Have you heard a pro play it? Awesome stuff!

Kaoru

[Kaoru]

Oh for crying out loud... I was trying to press preview post since I'm not finished!! Please ignore this one and I'll post the correctly written one soon.

Sorry... if Neil could please delete this post once I'm done with the second one, I'd appreciate it. No need to waste space... Thanks!

Kaoru

[Kaoru]

Kaoru San, or Kaoru... isn't Kaoru San someone else... my brain just leaked out my nose... no wait, it was just bogies.


Ahahahaha!! That was very funny! Ummm... I don't think a brain can leak out by itself... You need those hooks the Egyptians used to use to pull the brain out through the nose when they were preparing the mummify the person that died, in order to get it to come out through the nose. (That's true by the way. Gross, but true!)

Keep in mind that nothing remains the same for very long. Obviously the shamisen that were in stock were sold! Or... i pasted the wrong link ;) hehe hehehe, Oh yeah, I'd forgotten about that... Sorry! I dunno how I didn't even consider that.

I know what they are!! :)Well, that's good to know! :D

Just saw the new posts, sorry I thought this thread had died.

The link did indeed originally have a link on that was very useful, thanks Kaoru for the second one, I think I found that one when doing a little deeper digging.


You're welcome! :)

I know of 2 places to get some tutoring, only problem is that one is a full time world music degree, Being that I majored in music and have a Bachelor of Music in classical percussion performance(One reason I like kendo so much! I get to hit things that make cool noises that are on people, who are fun to hit too. :D ) from a music conservatory, I can tell you that you do not need to get a degree in music just to take lessons from a university instructor. Many teachers at my school taught outside of the conservatory, a small handfull of students.

All you need to do is, call the school's music department if it's a regular university or college and find out who teaches Shamisen. Then, you need to get the teacher's number if they'll give it to you. They may be willing to give you their home phone, but these days, that is less common. They will be willing to give you their office number for sure, instead. Then, you need to call and if you don't get the teacher personally, leave a message explaining who you are and what you want learn and give your phone number. They should call you back. If they do not call you back within a couple days, you need to try again until you reach them. College and conservatory music teachers are busy pros who have a hectic schedule, so give them a little room to get back to you. But, be persistent. That means you are serious about learning something.

So, don't just decide it's not possible to get a teacher.

and the other is in scotland (quite a way to travel). Uh, yeah... That's a bit TOO far! :D


As Scott says I can just learn from the internet, it hasnt harmed my JSA practice. (Keeps head down, and is glad he's not at club tonight):ponder:Contrary to popular belief you CAN teach yourself a musical instrument.

Ok, I have to reply to both of you, and I'm gonna say the same thing anyway if I post seperately, so I'll just say it once.

I don't like it it when people try to teach themselves an instrument, to be honest. I mean, you can do it, if you don't expect to be good at it or learn things correctly. It's just like learning kendo off the internet or with a video.

However... You will never have proper technique and it will be VERY hard to advance if you never get yourself a teacher. I've seen some really terrible technique from self taught people and they nearly always have a small range of what they can do and most can't read music, which really hinders learning. For example, there is more to playing guitar than simple chords and strumming on a guitar. A LOT more. Both my uncles are professional musicians and both play guitar as part of their work.

You just can't teach yourself proper technique because a teacher needs to be there to correct you when you do it wrong. And, if you never have lessons, how the heck will you even understand the difference between correct and incorrect technique and learn complicated things on your instrument?

There are a lot of things you miss out when you teach yourself an instrument, since books and videos are only two dimensional, and only show some of what you should know.

So, it's not la di da, I can teach myself X and do it right. No, it's going to be, I could teach myself this, but I will develop bad habits/technique that will need correcting when I find a teacher.

It's just the same as learning a JSA. If you hope to learn an instrument correctly and well, a person should take lessons from a qualified teacher who is not self-taught.

So, a person could just goof off and teach oneself for fun if they don't want to work in the business, and that's ok, but they should not try to go farther without a teacher if they decide to get serious about playing.

So, maybe this is all a bit too much, but I just disagree with you both, that's all. I can't help it, coming from the background I have in music. I just think it's better to learn from a teacher the correct way to play an instrument. That makes learning more fun and less frustrating in the end.

Also, when a person is trained, mistakes and bad technique are VERY easy to hear and see and it can be really annoying... it's hard to ignore them.

True, true, learning the guitar without a teacher wasn't too bad, tab books got me so far, and once I'd grasped the heavenly invention of "the power chord" everything else was pretty easy to grasp.


That's just the tip of the iceberg. Just imagine what you could do and learn if you had lessons and learned to read music! :)


I think the Shamisen however might be a little different. Learning the guitar with a good knowledge of western rock music, an idea of the kind of music I wanted to be able to play, and easy access to books and and the internet with loads of helpful hints, not to mention a good group of friends who also played, is a little different to learning a instrument which I do not have a deeper connection too.Might be?? Try a LOT harder. It's got only 3 strings remember... And, you have to learn the correct way to hold it, how to correctly hold the plectrum that you use to play it, how to correctly hold the left hand and move the fingers to play it, how to properly sit to play it, read the music, etc. etc.... It's more complicated than you think.
Lessons would be a good idea, imho. :)

Where do you live? Maybe I can help you out finding a teacher? Musicians generally know how to find each other when they want to.

Anyway, enough of the lecture, hahaha... It's a cool instrument. Have you heard a pro play it? Awesome stuff!

Anyway, I hope this was understandable. My eyes are really tired and it's hard to see what I'm writing right now, and it's making me tired as a result. So, If I've been confusing, I apologise. I didn't get much sleep last night thanks to my dog... :(

Ahhh... I'm finished... I can post this now, and click the correct button this time! Sorry guys!

Kaoru

[nico storm]

Ahahahaha!! That was very funny! Ummm...

And all the rest which I deleted to stop having to scroll, but you get the point!

Kaoru

Hi Kaoru

Thanks for the reply, thanks for the advice on contacting the teachers for tuition, I hadn't really thought of that. When I said "might be different" that was skill at understatement, I know it will be a lot harder, that was what I was trying to imply.

Although, personally, I dont think tuition is absolutely needed for people wishing to play, some of the best musicians in the world, and for this statement Im referring to western Rock music (and mainly guitarists) mainly, have been self taught. I think that this kind of music is more about the creativity and about how an individual expressess themsleves via their music, so perfect form (from a classical perspective) is not as important. You only have to look at the modern guitarists, there is no one way to "wear" a guitar, some wear it high, some dangle it round they're knee's (my preffered position)

Now this would differ for me, if say my dream was to perform for the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra. The style here is not about individual style or expression, so a better grounding in the correct ways of playing, say a Cello or trumpet, would be more important, if not imperative.

That is not to say that someone with classical training could not be creative and expressive.

As for my stand point on tuition if I decided to take up Shimasen, well, I completely agree, that if I am serious in anyway about it, I would seek a teacher. As I stated I do not have the knowledge of the cultural background, or a vast collection of music to refer to.

At the moment I have to way up a few things, money and time being the main 2 at the moment, £250 at the moment could go on many things, either linked to my JSA training, or on my life outside of the dojo. Plus my life is more than a little hectic at the moment with training, work, and just moving house...(and possibly starting another art soon) so part of me thinks that maybe waiting might be a good idea, but this is all really useful info, that will be researched further. As for where I am in the world... I live near Birmingham in the UK, so any more detailed contacts you could give me would be greatly apprecieated, thanks for your in depth post!

[ScottUK]

my life outside of the dojoEh? Explain...? :D

[JoDuncan]

:D

Well Kaoru, i understand exactly where you are coming from but to me it's all about the style....

If you want to learn "classical" then you'll probably need someone to teach you whereas if you just wanna rock out...... teachers? School? Schools out for... EVER! Pretty much a less articulate version of nico storm's post ;)

Having a teacher is v good and of course you will learn faster, but you don't need one. Don't equate this to JSA; learning a musical instrument (not music!) will take time (just like a sword art) but unlike a sword art you are unlikely to lose an appendage or put videos of your shite playing up on Youtube...

I'm equating the shamisen to the guitar which isn't too bad considering that they are both strung instruments and played in a similar fashion (fret hand and pick hand with strings perpendicular (ish) to ground) but the tuning, method etc are all different, it's more like a banjo i guess. There are so many sources for guitar but i doubt there are even a hundreth of the sources out there for shamisen!

Good luck in hunting down a teacher... in Bromsgrove or wherever it is you are; i know there are plenty of shamisen masters round there
:P

[ScottUK]

Closest I've found is Derby:

http://www.musicteachers.co.uk/teacher/81bdf6292e19caba9e57

Do not let her teach you koto or I will be forced to sacrifice you to the gods of peace and sodding quiet.

[nico storm]

Eh? Explain...? :D

Err...Eating...Sleeping...I cant mention the other, its a family forum after all, but it involves toilet paper!

[nico storm]

Closest I've found is Derby:

http://www.musicteachers.co.uk/teacher/81bdf6292e19caba9e57

Do not let her teach you koto or I will be forced to sacrifice you to the gods of peace and sodding quiet.


Oh cool...cheers Scott...so...koto = bad...shamisen = good...I get it! Maybe I can play in teh background during embu!

[ScottUK]

I find shamisen quite relaxing - but koto makes me consider one of these (http://www.militarypictures.info/d/80-3/Barret_M82.jpg).

[nico storm]

I prefer the personal touch (http://www.cairnsmowercity.com/images/craftsman%20chainsaw%2035020.jpg)!

[Kaoru]

Hey Nico-san! :)

I can't stop laughing at the little bit you added to my post! Ahahahahaha... Bwahhhh, that was funny! :D :D Ok, sorry, back to YOUR long post! hehehe... ;)

I'm gonna have to reply when my eyes start behaving properly. For some danged reason, I can't seem to clearly read anything, even though I've got it set at 22pt fonts(And my eyes are bad enough as it is, without this extra blurriness. I still need it at 22pt. regardless.) I had this problem yesterday, too. :( Dunno if it's due to not enough sleep(But I got 8 1/2 hours last night! And, yesterday, 7 1/2.) So, I'm not too happy about that! I promised a person in another forum on here I'd reply today, and I think that's about as much as my eyes can take, having to read carefully someone's post. It makes me tired when I'm trying hard to see what I'm writing and what the poster wrote, and then I can't write good replies. So, you'll get a reply soon. And, since you wrote a lot ( :D ), I want to be sure to reply properly.

The same is for Jo Duncan-san's post. I'm really sorry guys... Blame my stupid eyes for not replying. I hope this stops this soon. Heck, I even tried taking a nap when I got home and that only helped for an hour, and now they're back at the blurry thing again. :(

Anyway, thanks for the laugh! I'm gonna have to give you rep for that. :)

Kaoru


Hi Kaoru

Thanks for the reply, thanks for the advice on contacting the teachers for tuition, I hadn't really thought of that. When I said "might be different" that was skill at understatement, I know it will be a lot harder, that was what I was trying to imply.

Although, personally, I dont think tuition is absolutely needed for people wishing to play, some of the best musicians in the world, and for this statement Im referring to western Rock music (and mainly guitarists) mainly, have been self taught. I think that this kind of music is more about the creativity and about how an individual expressess themsleves via their music, so perfect form (from a classical perspective) is not as important. You only have to look at the modern guitarists, there is no one way to "wear" a guitar, some wear it high, some dangle it round they're knee's (my preffered position)

Now this would differ for me, if say my dream was to perform for the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra. The style here is not about individual style or expression, so a better grounding in the correct ways of playing, say a Cello or trumpet, would be more important, if not imperative.

That is not to say that someone with classical training could not be creative and expressive.

As for my stand point on tuition if I decided to take up Shimasen, well, I completely agree, that if I am serious in anyway about it, I would seek a teacher. As I stated I do not have the knowledge of the cultural background, or a vast collection of music to refer to.

At the moment I have to way up a few things, money and time being the main 2 at the moment, £250 at the moment could go on many things, either linked to my JSA training, or on my life outside of the dojo. Plus my life is more than a little hectic at the moment with training, work, and just moving house...(and possibly starting another art soon) so part of me thinks that maybe waiting might be a good idea, but this is all really useful info, that will be researched further. As for where I am in the world... I live near Birmingham in the UK, so any more detailed contacts you could give me would be greatly apprecieated, thanks for your in depth post!

[corwyn]

This is a really cool thread...I've been toying with the idea of trying to teach myself how to play shakuhachi, and both Nico Storm's and Kaoru's points of view have been wandering through my head for a few months. I played clarinet from elementary school through high school with instruction (including a band director in high school who is a Julliard graduate with a specialty in clarinet), and I've since then toyed with the guitar and the oboe on my own. I at least can read music and have some background, and my clarinet playing is light years ahead of my other two instruments. But at the same time, I have no misconceptions about playing any of them for anything other than my own fun and enjoyment. I think I'm doing better at the oboe if for no other reason that it's more similar to the clarinet than the guitar is.

The cost of a shakuhachi has kept me from trying it, especially since everybody keeps telling me how %#$@!@# hard it is to play. Plus, my attempts to play my little brother's flute back when we were kids weren't too successful. I don't think that the flute is supposed to sound like a hurricane is blowing in the background, and getting severely lightheaded after five minutes really cut into the practice sessions. :D

And maybe I didn't look hard enough, but finding an oboe teacher around here was near impossible. I can only imagine how hard it would be to find someone to teach me shakuhachi.


As for my stand point on tuition if I decided to take up Shimasen, well...

Sorry, I had to laugh when I saw this typo, since "shimasen" means "do not" or "does not" in Japanese, and this has become a thread about whether or not you should do something. Freudian slip? :D

[Kaoru]

This is a really cool thread...I've been toying with the idea of trying to teach myself how to play shakuhachi, and both Nico Storm's and Kaoru's points of view have been wandering through my head for a few months. I played clarinet from elementary school through high school with instruction (including a band director in high school who is a Julliard graduate with a specialty in clarinet), and I've since then toyed with the guitar and the oboe on my own. I at least can read music and have some background, and my clarinet playing is light years ahead of my other two instruments. But at the same time, I have no misconceptions about playing any of them for anything other than my own fun and enjoyment. I think I'm doing better at the oboe if for no other reason that it's more similar to the clarinet than the guitar is.

The cost of a shakuhachi has kept me from trying it, especially since everybody keeps telling me how %#$@!@# hard it is to play. Plus, my attempts to play my little brother's flute back when we were kids weren't too successful. I don't think that the flute is supposed to sound like a hurricane is blowing in the background, and getting severely lightheaded after five minutes really cut into the practice sessions. :D

And maybe I didn't look hard enough, but finding an oboe teacher around here was near impossible. I can only imagine how hard it would be to find someone to teach me shakuhachi.



Sorry, I had to laugh when I saw this typo, since "shimasen" means "do not" or "does not" in Japanese, and this has become a thread about whether or not you should do something. Freudian slip? :D

You can't find an Oboe teacher?? But you're in Mass.!! THREE major music conservatories are in that state, plus some good colleges with good music programs. Gonna find one for you. :D Just see if I don't. :D

Kaoru

[corwyn]

You can't find an Oboe teacher?? But you're in Mass.!! THREE major music conservatories are in that state, plus some good colleges with good music programs. Gonna find one for you. :D Just see if I don't. :D

Kaoru

Heck...the nearest reputable instrument repair place I could find to work on my wooden clarinet is about an hour away. I'd have a lot more options if I lived further east in the state.

But I didn't look particularly hard, either. I was looking for casual lessons (like at an instrument shop) and didn't even think about going to someplace "real" (like Berklee in Boston).

[Kaoru]

Heck...the nearest reputable instrument repair place I could find to work on my wooden clarinet is about an hour away. I'd have a lot more options if I lived further east in the state.

But I didn't look particularly hard, either. I was looking for casual lessons (like at an instrument shop) and didn't even think about going to someplace "real" (like Berklee in Boston).

Actually, according to the map I just looked at here:

http://www.sitesatlas.com/Flash/USCan/static/MAFH.htm

you are about 30-40 miles away from Boston. So, that's not too far to drive for lessons from any teacher in that area, and I know there are several good oboe teachers there. More than two, I can promise you. Probably 10 at least, given what's in Boston. And, you can also call any of the conservatories there, and ask if they know of anyone decent who lives near you who could give you lessons. Those are the best places to ask for finding a teacher because most have a lot of connections to other musicians. Call the Boston Conservatory of Music, the New England Conservatory of Music and the Berklee College of Music(This one is a mostly Jazz, modern and world music school but has a small classical department.). Ask for the department chair of Oboe studies or any of the oboe instructors. Usually, the dept. chair is the best place to start.

Someone should be able to tell you if anyone can give you lessons and where. If you can't find someone through those schools, hit the universities. I'd go for the conservatories first, because they hire the best musicians to teach and usually, they know more. It's really hard to even make it into one of those kinds of schools, WAY worse than auditioning for a university. The teachers are like hachidan and up. So, you'll find good recommendations from them for who to study with.

Can you find the phone numbers or do you want me to post them tomorrow? I can also find who to contact at each school if you want, if that would help.

Oh yeah... Oboe is a LOT harder than the clarinet. It's a double reed instrument, unlike the clarinet. VERY hard to play as a result. I'm sure you know that though. Since it's a reed instrument, and you've learned clarinet from a very qualified teacher, you understand about reeds and their fickleness... and the rest. ;) Have you learned to make your own reeds yet? Looks like a pain to me... But, they do it.

Kaoru

[corwyn]

I can find the numbers easily enough, but thanks for the offer. I'm having fun doing my noodling around for now, but maybe some day when I have the time to dedicate to make taking lessons really worth it. I pick up the oboe once in a while (every couple of months) and play for a few days, then other things in life take over for a while...any teacher worth anything would throw me out pretty quickly. Besides, I'm pretty well convinced that sane people don't try to drive in Boston if they want to stay alive. I went to college in Cambridge, but my driving was always AWAY from Boston if I could help it. Not to mention that parking just doesn't exist.

We never got far enough into the insanity of the clarinet to get to the point of modifying the reeds, but I could definitely tell the difference between a good one and a bad one, even from the same box. Even now, 15 years later, I still know when to just chuck it in the trash can. And in a brief bit of increased insanity, I even upgraded my ligature to a "pro" Van Doren one, and I almost fell out of my chair when I realized how much better my tone is now than it was back when I was studying seriously...even though I've played maybe 20 times in the past 15 years.

As for the oboe, the double reed was a bit of adjustment, but it wasn't too hard to play a note. Getting the note in tune is another story, especially compounded by the oboe being slightly conical, compounding the tuning issue. And also, because the oboe keying seems less complete than the clarinet keying (at least in the system I have on my student-level Yamaha), I have to break the clarinet rule of never sliding fingers from one key to another (there's almost always an alternate fingering on the other hand), which is a mental block I have to overcome. No way I'm trying to make my own reeds yet, though the Marlin Lesher company seems to make some that work well enough for me "out of the box", last a fairly long time, and seem pretty consistent. And again, I'm just messing around for now.

Thanks, though, and I will definitely keep your suggestions in mind!