KONIKOS Verlag has published a whole series of exercise books for oboe, saxophone and bassoon in recent years. Further booklets are in the works and will follow in the coming months/years. What are they intended to offer? They are intended to help learn technical components on:

- learning the oboe
- learning the saxophone
- the bassoon.

You can't reinvent everything, but you can improve and optimise some things.

Many exercises for wind instruments have been around for many years and go back to famous musicians/composers such as J.J. Quantz, W.A. Mozart and L. Mozart. In other words, many things are not new. But working habits and approaches change and adapt, new teaching methods are developed. But what remains are the "prerequisites of craftsmanship" and thus the technical foundations that make our musicality and desire to express ourselves musically possible in the first place.

For every musician, whether professional, student or amateur, the question inevitably arises at some point "How/what is the best way to practise"? This question, as simple as it may seem, is difficult to answer; after all, every person learns according to different patterns and principles: what works for one person does not seem to be transferable to another. This means that each person must find the methodology (from Greek methodikḗ (téchnē) = art of proceeding according to plan) and didactics (from Ancient Greek διδάσκειν didáskein'lehren = "art" and the "science" of teaching and learning) that are suitable for him or her.

Learning methods and didactics should be based on the findings of learning psychology or educational psychology in order to be as successful as possible.(1) This means that effective learning requires a longer-term systematic structure. For this purpose, precise learning goals must be set and aimed at, and the learning results must be checked by corresponding learning controls.(2&3)

This short introduction alone vividly describes the complexity of learning or practising in the psychological sense of learning, and yet only deals with a fraction of the subject matter.

In the exercise books, I have tried to deal with the content of practising in the area of technique in the form of scale studies. The aim is to systematically build up a solid technique as mentioned above. Looking back on my own studies, I unfortunately have to conclude that my personal approach to practising could have been much more effective and purposeful. Three central motivations ultimately led me to write the exercise books:

1. how can I personally keep fit as an orchestral musician as effectively as possible?
2. what should a student at least be able to do technically during his or her studies?
3. how can I, as a layman, prepare myself better technically for individual pieces (e.g. by studying a particular key intensively)?

Of course, one cannot reinvent the world, quite the contrary - many of the exercises used in the exercise book have been around for hundreds of years, but I have tried to write this booklet in such a way that it serves us musicians in the matter. This means in detail:

 

1. 1. the range of notes is exactly coordinated
   for the oboe: (mostly up to f''' - although one can easily leave out individual bars if the register is still too high / ambitious oboists/saxophonists are of course free to extend the exercises up to a''')
   for the saxophone: up to f'''
   For the bassoon: the range is very extensive for the sake of completeness, but it is up to each individual (and this is also noted) to simply reduce it for his/her own needs.
2. 2. there is enough space for private markings
3. 3. metronome indications and fingerings are not given, but can be freely chosen and entered by everyone
4. 4. some practising methods are explained, also for mental practising and practising without instrument
5. 5. visually appealing and very durable booklet (thread binding & and additional cellophane cover)

This sounds quite simple, but in times of economic constraints, from which many publishers suffer, generous space for private entries alone is unfortunately no longer a given with many sheet music materials nowadays. Also, there are no scale studies (for oboe/bassoon) in which all exercises are notated in all keys; not everyone may consider this necessry, but feedback from various university professors and music school teachers has shown that many pupils and students find it much easier to practise an exercise with, for example, fourth intervals in D major if this is available as a notation. It is not enough, as is so often the case, to print only the beginnings of an exercise in order to refer to a continuation of the exercise to be played by heart. These get lost again after a short time and the progress is marginal.

In terms of content, the scale studies are divided as follows:

1. 1st scale, basic scheme, possible variations, range of fifths, scale with alternate note.
2. 2nd thirds, repeated, flowing, with alternating note
3. 3rds, repeated, flowing, with alternating note
4. 4. staccato
5. 5. triads, triad - variations

OBOE:

In the minor edition there is a section with melodic minor scale exercises; the other exercises are notated in harmonic minor.

The major edition is rounded off by:

• various playing-in exercises
• exercises for embouchure and air leading
• an intonation exercise by Ralf-Jörn Köster
• a sound and legato exercise by Albrecht Mayer.

The Minor Edition contains further exercises for:
a controlled and clean embouchure (among others by Andrea Glaser)

• Staccato exercises by Maurice Bourgue
• arpeggio exercises by Emanuel Abbühl.
• This booklet is rounded off by an essay on vibrato by Matthias Bäcker.

So far, I know of no other exercise book for oboists/bassoonists that is so extensive, systematic and "customer-friendly" (= plenty of space for private markings and appealing layout) and that includes the perhaps somewhat "annoying" but absolutely necessary exercises for studying scales.

Of course, the size of the two booklets (88/96/112 pages) could easily be extended, but I think that with this collection of exercises (6 pages per key for oboe / 8 pages per key for bassoon) one has a wonderful technical basis on which to build at will. The number of exercises is also easily manageable if this booklet is to be a "constant companion" for many years.

There is now a third edition in the Major Edition for oboe; all booklets are bilingual: German and English.

  So far, I know of no other exercise book for oboists/bassoonists that is so extensive, systematic and "customer-friendly" (= plenty of space for private markings and appealing design) and that includes the perhaps somewhat "annoying" but absolutely necessary exercises for studying scales.

Of course, the size of the two booklets (88/96/112 pages) could easily be extended, but I think that with this collection of exercises (6 pages per key for oboe / 8 pages per key for bassoon) one has a wonderful technical basis on which to build at will. The number of exercises is also easily manageable if this booklet is to be a "constant companion" for many years.

There is now a third edition in the Major Edition for oboe; all booklets are bilingual: German and English.

The Junior Edition:
Since May 2020, there is also the Junior Edition. It contains some tried and tested exercises from the Major and Minor Editions, but is designed for a completely different - significantly younger - target group. This applies above all to the general range (since not every (pupil/children's) instrument has a low b' or b', the range in the Junior Edition is largely limited to the c' - c''' range), but also to the difficulty of the exercises. Each key is treated on 3 pages; besides C major, the keys go up to 3# and 3b. Minor scales are also well and clearly presented in this booklet. This booklet provides young oboists with a good first overview of the various major and minor keys and the unavoidable technical basics.
 
For Austria:

the Junior Edition contains all the technical requirements for the transitional examination in the Musikschulwerk (lower level to intermediate level) "Land am Ton - Bronze", as well as for the "Leistungsabzeichen in Bronze" (brass music association).

 

Addendum No.1

Due to the very high demand, the exercise booklet "Technical Fundamentals of the Oboe" has already become the absolute standard repertoire for oboists since its publication in November 2015...


Addendum No.2

In the conception of these booklets, I have deliberately not taken into account the two keys with 7 accidentals, as I consider the ratio of practice effort - necessity to be low. This applies equally to the range: of course, this could easily be extended up to a''', but in my opinion, this too is of secondary importance because of the general oboe literature (new music is certainly an exception). Of course, it is desirable to adapt the exercises for one's own use, and if necessary to extend them up to a'''.




Individual references:

1 .  Hans Aebli: Grundlagen des Lehrens: eine Allgemeine Didaktik auf psychologischer Grundlage. Klett-Cotta, Stuttgart 1993/2003.

2 . A. M. Strathmann, K. J. Klauer: Lernverlaufsdiagnostik: Ein Ansatz zur längerfristigen Lernfortschrittsmessung. In: Zeitschrift für Entwicklungspsychologie und Pädagogische Psychologie. 42 (2010), S. 111–122.

3.  Siegbert A. Warwitz: Lernziele und Lernkontrollen in der Verkehrserziehung. In: Ders.: Verkehrserziehung vom Kinde aus. Wahrnehmen-Spielen-Denken-Handeln. 6. Auflage. Schneider-Verlag, Baltmannsweiler 2009, S. 23 und 26–28 f.