The following includes the Preface and the Table of Contents of my book. The book is 70 pages, spiral bound, in English and German. At the end of the Preface there is an explanation as to the suitability of this book for recorder as well.

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Technical Exercises for Baroque Oboe

by Matthew Peaceman

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Preface

The object of this exercise book is to offer a practical structure for efficient technical study of baroque oboe for beginners seeking their first technical orientation, intermediate players looking to widen their technical horizons, advanced oboists wanting new depths of capability, and their teachers. "Baroque oboe" will be defined as referring to the various instruments of the double reed family, constructed between the middle of the 17th century and the middle of the 18th century, with a range from c' to d''' (without c#'), and having two keys (c, eb) or three keys ("additional" left side eb key for right hand over left playing). Part 1 contains diatonic scale and arpeggio exercises. Part 2 contains exercises for many of the fingering problems specific to the baroque oboe. Part 3 contains chromatic scale exercises. The exercises are written out completely in order to relieve users of this book of the need to concern themselves with how each scale and arpeggio pattern continues. They are also applicable to oboe d´amore, taille, oboe da caccia, and other historical oboes with the same range (assuming their respective transpositions).

 

 

How to use this book

Practice Part 1 completely and regularly in C major at first, playing each pattern three times without a mistake before going on to the next. As the patterns become familiar, change the key signature to include all major keys, beginning with no flats or sharps, and then adding one flat, one sharp, two flats, two sharps, three flats, three sharps, etc., always alternating between flat and sharp keys. If preferred, begin with sharps instead of flats. When the major keys, with up to three flats and sharps, have been mastered at a nominal tempo, begin practicing the relative minor keys in the harmonic and the melodic minor modes, in the same fashion. (In "Chapter 8c. Diminished 7ths," key changes are indicated.)

Beginners should work first on Chapters 1 and 4 in Part 1. Play the exercises rhythmically and evenly (preferably with a metronome) while carefully accentuating the indicated duple and triple metric structures. When the patterns can be played flawlessly and naturally, increase the tempo.

Use Part 2 to work on specific baroque oboe difficulties, either as part of a general technical program or for extracurricular practice, to solve problems encountered elsewhere. Though I have tried to give a rational specific order to the chapters in this part, feel free to use the exercises selectively. Within the context of Part 2 ("Specific...Problems"), it is also profitable to practice the scale and arpeggio exercises in Part 1 selectively, as needed.

Part 3 concentrates on chromatics. For the music up to the middle of the 18th century, practicing chromatic scales might seem somewhat overly ambitious. In the music of the second half of the 18th century, these exercises become more relevant. From the standpoint of "technique for technique´s sake," it won´t hurt to feel at home in "foreign places."

Practice the exercises in all parts with the indicated slurs to prevent the phenomenon of the tongue waiting for the fingers and so hiding inaccurate finger movements. This approach will also help overcome the difficulties caused by the irregular nature (resistance) of each note in its relationships to other notes. It is not my intent to minimize the musical and rhetorical importance of articulated playing for which these exercises are equally suited.

Critical, "honest" listening to one´s own practicing is absolutely essential. Whatever level of technical proficiency the player achieves during practice will have to be acceptable on stage as well.

To the Fingering Chart:

The fingerings presented on the Fingering Chart are based only in part on historical sources. They do not necessarily all work for every instrument, and there are probably additional, useful fingerings other players have discovered.There are often several good fingerings available for a particular note, to attain technical, intonational, and tonal goals; it is my opinion that one should seek them. Though I do not advocate divorce from historical responsibility, I do take the personal liberty of assuming that the players of yesteryear were probably no less interested in increasing their musical possibilities and no less inclined to bind themselves to artificial limitations than we are. If one fingering works better than another in a given situation, then I am inclined to use it. Study historical fingering charts and read what the composers and teachers of the oboe at the time had to say about fingerings (i.e. Pierre Freillon-Poncein´s LA VÉRITABLE MANIÈRE D´APPRENDRE A JOUER EN PERFECTION DU HAUTBOIS, DE LA FLÛTE ET DU FLAGEOLET... Paris, 1700; Jacques Hotteterre´s PRINCIPES DE LA FLUTE TRAVERSIERE ... Paris, 1707; Johann Joachim Quantz´s Versuch einer Anweisung..., Berlin, 1752; and others). Then experiment, make comparisons, and decide what seems best.

*Preface; How to use this book / Vorwort;Verwendung dieses Buches

*Fingering Chart / Grifftabelle

*Part 1/Teil 1 Diatonic Exercises / Diatonische Übungen

1. Minor Seconds / Kleine Sekunden
2. Major Seconds / Große Sekunden
3. Minor Thirds / Kleine Terzen
4. Major Thirds / Große Sekunden
5. Chromatic Scales / Chromatische Tonleiter

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