Finding an Oboe Teacher
For the Parents
One
day after playing clarinet 2 years in school, I came home
and told my parents that I wanted to play the oboe.
Their
first reaction was, "The who?"
"The
oboe Mom."
"That's
nice." She answered, and then said, "What's that.
That big curly thing?"
Unfortunately,
this is how most parents are introduced to the oboe. The first
thing to remember is not to panic. You should know however
that the oboe is probably the most difficult of the woodwind
instruments to start.
It's
also one of the more shall we say, unpleasant sounding instruments
for the beginner to pick up.
As
hard as it is though, if your child has talent and a lot of
self-perseverance, it can be a wonderfully expressive instrument.
My
best advice is for you to go and speak with your child's band
or orchestra director and see if he or she has any oboe teacher
contacts. It is best to start with private lessons as soon
as you can to avoid too many bad habits from developing early
on.
If
you have not had any luck finding an oboe teacher through
this method, contact a local music school. If that doesn't
work, try contacting an oboist in the closest professional
orchestra closest to were you live.
Many
times the oboists in these orchestras either accept private
students, or have an older experienced student who would be
a perfect match to teach a beginning oboe student.
If
you still don't have any luck, try going over to the reed
making forum. Post a request for a teacher there.
The
important thing is to not give up and to support your child
100%. It is worth it in the end!
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