HANDLE WITH CARE FLUTE CLARINET

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2 HANDLE WITH CARE FLUTE RH thumb should be on its side, and not in a hitchhiker position. RH thumb and 1 st finger should always point in the same direction. RH should be slanted toward Eb key; never toward the Bb lever key. RH pinky should be curved and slightly on its side; not flat and concave. LH tip and base of the thumb should be on the same side of the flute. LH thumb should form a T to the body of the flute. LH pinky should never lose contact with the Ab key not underneath the key or curving toward the palm. The RH wrist is either straight or slightly arched, but should not be bent toward the body of the flute. The back of the left hand should be perpendicular to the flute. There is a slight break in the shape of the hand and wrist. LH index finger first knuckle should be between the first two physical keys of the flute; not closer to the first physical key thus resulting in flat fingers. Be sure the palms of the hands are soft so no tension is felt or seen. CLARINET RH thumb should not be too far to the left of the thumb rest; the thumb rest never goes past the cuticle. RH fingers should be curved. RH fingers should not collapse into the rods. RH thumb and 1 st finger should always point in the same direction. RH pinky must always hover near the F/C key and have curvature. RH index finger should not support the clarinet or be used as a balance point. This also results in flat fingers. LH index must never lose contact with the G# and A keys. Tip of LH index finger should angle down to the first silver ring. LH pinky should always hover near the E/B key and have curvature. LH thumb should be at 1:00-2:00 and must only move from the middle knuckle; thumb should not be perpendicular or parallel to the clarinet. LH thumb should never touch wood (body of instrument). RH and LH ping pong ball/marble reference Be sure the palms of the hands are soft so no tension is felt or seen. Be sure that no finger touches another key while playing.

3 SAXOPHONE RH thumb should not be too far to the left of the thumb rest; the thumb rest never goes past the cuticle. RH fingers should be curved. RH index finger should not collapse into any of the side keys. RH pinky should be curved. RH thumb and 1 st finger should always point in the same direction. Fingers should be placed on the pearls. The fleshy part will stay in contact with the pearls. The little finger should rest on the roller keys. Home position will be the Eb key, which is the higher of the two keys. LH thumb should rest on the back thumb rest and never leave. The second knuckle should basically be in the middle of the thumb rest. Wrists should not collapse into the instrument, thus resulting in broken wrist and flat fingers. Be sure that no finger touches another key while playing. Palm Keys When utilizing palm keys, keep fingers as close to their original placement as possible while using the wrist to help facilitate. The detailed information below will enhance your instruction of this challenging component regarding saxophone hand position. High D PK 1 o Use the LH index finger, 3 rd (big) knuckle. o Keep the other fingers curved, relaxed, and hovering over the pearls. High D # - PK 1 and 2 o Use the LH index finger, 2 nd (middle) knuckle o Keep the other fingers curved, relaxed, and hovering over the pearls. o This is where tension begins to creep into the palm keep it relaxed High E PK 1 and 2 plus RH top side key o LH remains the same keep it relaxed. o Add the top side key in the RH use the space between the big and middle knuckle. It is VERY IMPORTANT that the student s right hand position stay as close to normal as possible. Ensure the right hand fingers stay as close to hovering over the pearls as possible. Students tend to contort and move the entire hand to activate this key, which is inefficient. High F PK 1, 2 and 3 plus RH top side key

4 o LH adds the third palm key using the 2 nd (middle knuckle) of the LH middle finger. o Keep the palm soft and relaxed. o Hand should remain curved. o Like high E, the RH hand position should stay as close to normal as possible. Pinky Keys When utilizing pinky keys, it is important that students land on the roller and never past it. Slide roller to roller not key to key. The pinky should never be picked up when moving from roller to roller. Right Hand--When moving from the Eb (upstairs) key to the C (downstairs) key, it is important to land on the roller, never past it. Slide roller to roller, NOT key to key. Practice exercises moving from Eb to C not playing and playing. Practice these in short intervals as the pinkies will get tired. Teach your students to work on these two or three times during their practice session for short amounts of time every other day. Left Hand--When using the LH pinky, it is important that students NEVER pick the pinky up when moving between keys! When using the C#/Db and the B key, slide roller to roller, NOT key to key. When using Bb, students can either move roller to roller, or pivot the LH pinky down. Practice exercises moving from C#/Db to B, and B to Bb (harder). The same practice rules apply. Do not attempt to hold the saxophone with your hands, as this will result in poor technique, etc. Balance the saxophone in the manner discussed earlier. TRUMPET RH thumb should not be bent back. The RH thumb and first finger must always point in the same direction. RH fingers should have curvature; the pads of the fingers should not extend past the pearls. RH palm should not collapse into body of instrument. RH pinky should not be placed in the ring. LH thumb should be placed in the saddle, etc not in upright position and not completely curved around the instrument (for students with larger hands). If both thumbs are placed correctly, they should not touch, cross, or be anywhere near each other. Remember the left hand does not grip the instrument. No tension should be felt in this hand when holding the instrument. (The exception is beginners with very small hands.) Wrists should not collapse into the instrument.

5 Watch for soft elbows and hands while students are playing. RH ping pong ball reference LH marble reference FRENCH HORN There should not be bends or wrinkles in either arm when holding the French horn. The inside of the arm should never touch the outside of the chest cavity when holding the French horn correctly. No body part should touch another body part! Elbows must hang naturally so the natural slope of the shoulders will not be hampered. LH wrist should be straightened by moving the bell away from the body not by raising the left elbow. LH fingers lie flat on rotary valves, and should not be curved. The palms of both hands should feel soft. The RH should be flexible because it is often used for tuning purposes. Watch for soft elbows and hands while students are playing. TROMBONE Students should never be allowed to gauge 3 rd positions at the bell. RH thumb, index and 2 nd finger should always remain on the crossbar; the slide should never be gripped by the entire hand in an awkward position, thus resulting in incorrect wrist placement. LH index finger should naturally curve over the shank of the mouthpiece, never underneath the cross bar. Students should not use their right foot to achieve 6 th /7 th position; nor should their right foot be used to empty their spit valve. Elbows are directly responsible for basic muscle memory to create correct positions. Wrists are used to adjust inherent and errant pitch tendencies.

6 EUPHONIUM/TUBA The euphonium RH thumb and 1 st finger should point in same direction. The thumb should not be wrapped around the valve casing (older, three valve instruments) which results in the palm collapsing into the cross brace. The palm should not collapse into the cross brace. Piston valves are approached basically the same as trumpet. Rotary valves are basically approached the same as French horn. RH fingers should have curvature; the pads of the fingers should not extend past the pearls. Students with compensating fourth valves must move their LH index finger (NOT second finger) in the same manner that they move their other valves. Elbows should not collapse into body while playing. The tuba LH should always be holding the tuba in a manner that does not disturb the balance of the upper body and shoulders. As soon as appropriate, students should be shown how the LH is used to manipulate the first valve slide. More detailed information on all major instruments can be found at: