I just met Amy last week. She is the new interim bass clarinetist for the New York Philharmonic. We went to dinner with friends from Backun Musical Services and then I popped in on her and Morrie the next afternoon. Her small clarinets were in clamps after repadding, but her bass was finished up and she was just checking it out. She sounded marvelous, really warm full tone and unbelievable fluidity. She tried out one of my Backun wooden bass bells and was just floored…ended up leaving her bell behind for a conversion.

I got a lesson from her based on material from legendary teacher David Weber that focussed on listening to the connections beteween notes on extremely slow chromatic scales and arpeggios…played so slowly with fingers like “pressing into a sponge” that you can hear the “gliss” between each note. She has amazing ears and I’ve never listened so hard to note connections in my life. It brought a whole new meaning to slow and deliberate practice…and it is what leads to that incredible fluidity. As Amy says, “It’s not in the fingers, it’s in the air.”

Expecting more of the same from Jessica Phillips of the Metropolitan Opera orchestra on the small clarinets in August. These are the lessons that you can chew on for years.