Howard Sanner said the following: "I never found that practicing the Farkas accuracy etude improved anything other than my ability to play the Farkas accuracy etude. My undergrad teacher was a big believer in this page of the Farkas book, and, eventually, I got so I wasn't so bad at playing it. I still missed notes right and left in everything else, though."
As a young fellow, I found this to be true also, in a way. It did improve my accuracy a bit--mostly, I think, because it made me concentrate, more than any actual physical benefit. But the effect was limited. Then I had a moment of clarity. I realized that when you play this study literally the way it's marked, you aren't learning the pitches the way that you would play them in an actual piece. So I continued to use the printed notes, but changed my approach. Use Farkas's pitch sets, but use them in a realistic context. As example, the first pitch on p. 69 of the Farkas book is top line 'F'. Instead of playing it as a generic quarter note at a 'piano' dynamic (as marked), play that note in context as if it is the first note of an actual phrase. Let's say, play it as if it is the first note of the "cadenza" in the 3rd movement of Strauss "Concerto No. 1". The second note in the study is a 3rd line 'B'; play it as if it is the first note of Debussy "Prelude to the afternoon of a faun". Third note is an 'Ab' above the staff; play as if it is the soft 'G#' entrance in first movement of Beethoven "Symphony No. 7". Fourth line 'D'; play as if the first note of the 3rd movement of the Franz Strauss, op. 8 concerto. Etc. You get the point. Play those notes not just as theoretical constructs, but as actual entrances in actual pieces. Change the order of the printed notes. Change the pieces that you are trying to imitate, etc.. But make the way you play them very "real world". Another good way to practice first pitches is to simply pick up real pieces of music and practice playing the first note of each phrase. You can also practice the first two notes of each phrase. Or three. Or the first measure. Etc.. There are thousands of possible permutations. The important thing is to practice these first notes as if they are in context. By the way, Hans Pizka's previous message about the specifics of how to "woodshed" first notes is one of the most thoughtful and well-written things I've ever seen him post. Read it and pay attention. I'm told that this is a true story. If not, it doesn't really matter, the point is the same. I've heard that someone once asked Barry Tuckwell, "What is the hardest note on the horn." His response was, "The first one." Tim Timothy F. Thompson, DMA Professor of Music University of Arkansas at Fayetteville _______________________________________________ post: horn@memphis.edu unsubscribe or set options at https://pegasus.memphis.edu/cgi-bin/mailman/options/horn/archive%40jab.org
