Thomas Sebastian Allely
BMusHons
Sydney, New South Wales, Australia

Ride of the Valkyries from the B Major Section.

This message has been edited. Last edited by: Auditions,

Ride_Takes.mp3 (512 Kb, 95 downloads) Ride Thomas Allely

Dear Thomas,

Your "Ride" sounded very good, and I was very impressed by your rhythm, especially in the rests. Audition committees are always very relieved when someone is that solid, so keep that great trait. I also appreciated the volume: you weren't overblowing or letting your sound get at all ugly, which is rare, and fantastic!
Technically, I had a few thoughts:
1. I think you could sustain more on your long notes. They are good solid blocks of sound, but I think it'll sound more exciting and have a more healthy sounding airflow and line if you were to sustain them more, while using the same amount of tongue.
2. I am not totally concinced that your notes are perfectly in tune with each other. If you don't already do this, I would take your excerpts apart, take out the dotted rhythms, and just play the arpeggios, in rhythm and at the performance volume. Especially in the low 2nd half of it, the tongue seemed to get in the way of the pitch being totally clear at the very beginnings of the notes. Slurring that part might help that.
3. Just to be very picky, it occurred to me that your lines could be more anticipatory~ I want to feel like the line builds, with each dotted rhythm a little more excited than the previous one. Then in the next line, you start over, and when the harmony changes at the end of the 2nd line, exaggerate that. Then in the next section, the low octave, you can really "send off" the ends of your lines. Practicing in a large hall is helpful, both for intonation, and also for quality of sound on our loud excerpt "send-offs".

Best of luck with everything, and thanks for sending in your tape. I would love to see your country someday!

Jennifer

Hello Thomas,

Excellent playing. Your rhythm is very good, and your sound is energetic without getting violent. Ms. Montone has some excellent suggestions on dealing with intonation and musical issues. What I would add to her comments are some thoughts on your articulation, especially in the lowest register. When you are playing very low, your sound often takes too long to "bloom" and the attacks can sound a bit "fluffy."

I would suggest that you practice very softly and very staccato with the goal being to train your lips to repond instantly at any dynamic. Here is a 3-part strategy: 1) Try the 2nd part of the ride that way (soft and staccato), listening for great intonation and even articulation. 2) Once you can play it beautifully soft and short, then try softly and with the same precision on the beginnings of the notes, but add the length that you want. 3) Finally, increase the volume while keeping the same quality as your ppp version, until you reach the dynamic that you want.

This can take a lot of patience, but can pay off big time in the long run. I use this type of excercise quite a lot, whenever my low-range articulation is suffering.

Good Luck!

Gary Peterson

Ditto. I'd like a little more sustain and general feeling of line. Never pass up the chance to make a phrase. Good playing overall.