JK Reed Making

“The seedy underbelly of oboe playing” is how a friend of mine and fellow musician refers to that critical aspect of our artistry: reed making. We have the unique opportunity to fashion our unique mouthpieces out of a small, paper thin piece of the mysterious and beautiful grass called arundo donax. 

Often reed making sessions focus on teaching skills. This is because skills are easy to teach but they can be very hard to learn. For this reason, I approach reed making holistically. Balancing skill development with mindset while cultivating awareness of valuable experience leads more directly to miracle reeds and the freedom to achieve intense musical expression.

I offer reed making training in person in my studio but also online which gives oboists the unique opportunity to go very deep and enjoy built-in, long-term accountability on their reed making journey. This allows us the luxury to problem solve collectively and also to celebrate our reed making wins together, no matter how big or small.

Learning to make reeds is comparable to learning a language. You can do it alone. You’ll plumb the real nuances when you enter into conversation and exchange.  With dedicated practice and plenty of interaction, it takes three years to become independent and even then, a conscientious artist will spend a lifetime honing nuances and expanding vocabulary. For this reason, reed making is best practiced and learned in the context of a community in which one can benefit from the collective skill, mindset and experience.

ALL of the JK Double Reed courses and workshops are INTERACTIVE. For prerecorded video material and other resources, visit my Facebook Page JK Double Reed Making.  Be sure to subscribe to the JK Double Reed Making Newsletter. I’ll keep you up to date on upcoming reed making programs, invite you to free training sessions and share valuable information pertaining to reeds and reed making. This newsletter comes to you SOLELY on a permission basis and you may unsubscribe at any time.

For lessons in BAROQUE OBOE, contact me via email.