Archived under: Deep thoughts, Pet Peeves, Playing in orchestra | Professionalism & Etiquette
Something to not do Warming Up for a Concert
Tonight I enjoyed hearing the ASU Sinfonietta perform, among the best concerts I have heard them perform. Bravo!
However, before the concert I was reminded that this is a group of younger students. In that a player of another instrument (not horn) was noodling around and played a major horn solo that was on the concert on their instrument before the concert.
In the professional world this would not happen. I am thankfully very sure the student tonight did not mean to annoy or insult but there is a lesson yet to be learned about being a good colleague. Never play other peoples licks when warming up.
It is almost as annoying as running major excerpts unrelated to the concert onstage before a concert. It is annoying to the other players and the audience. Don’t do it. Practice somewhere else.
Observe a professional orchestra warming up. Most of the players play pretty generic materials warming up, only touching lightly on a few passages from the concert from their own part. That is all they play and it is the way to go.
Be aware and be professional, and, even if the other player is one of your friends don’t play the parts of other people.
Related to this article
- News from 1988: The Concert Rondo now has Sixty More Measures
Several times recently I have noted that it is not widely enough known that the Concert Rondo of Mozart, K. 371, is actually sixty measures longer than the old standard editions of the work. The sixty “new” measures of music were discovered in 1988 on a...
The Most Insane and Crazy Carmen Story Ever - Part I
Big Fish Eats Little Fish, Symphony Eats Opera
The Retronome 
Why was the Valve Invented?
Thinking About Fingerings
