Played my Music?

earthHave you played my music lately?

I would love to know of your recent or upcoming performances.
Please let me know in the comments below.

Name of concert
Piece performed
County, city & venue
Date of performance

  1. Carl’s avatar

    Hey
    i recently played black and blue at the forbes eisteddfod and gained a first place. when i got up on the stage i was incredibly nervous because i had never performed it yet, but after the performance i was so exhilarated and pumped. it felt like i had just run a marathon. though i did stuff up the altissimo G in the second last linenot many people noticed. tomorrow is my 8th grade sax exam so wish me luck.
    Carl

    p.s. though some people i know dont really believe the piece is challenging i find it incredibly hard. Black and blue would have to be the funnest piece i have played for years. thanks for a brilliant piece.

    Reply

  2. Barry’s avatar

    Thanks for playing my piece Carl – you aren’t the first to miss the high G – I’m sure that you will get it tomorrow!

    Barry

    Reply

  3. Sophie’s avatar

    Hey
    This year I’m playing foreign for my yr 11 recital. Its an awesome piece and I’m having a heap of fun playing it. At the end of last term I played it for a competition my school ran and got some really good feedback from my teachers.
    Thanks for such an awesome piece
    Sophie

    Reply

  4. Barry’s avatar

    Hi Sophie,

    I am pleased to hear that you are playing one of my pieces for your recital! This is a tough piece for year 11 – well done. This is one of my earliest works and I hope that the altissimo section has been fun to learn!

    Barry

    Reply

  5. Jonni’s avatar

    Hi Barry

    I heard someone play your piece “Beat me” yesterday. It was awesome! I really love your piece and i am going to have a presentation about it tomorrow :D I am not ready to play that piece myself yet since there is a lot of tricky effects.
    Now I am listening to your pieces all the time and… yeh…I LOVE THEM :D
    Thanks for being a great composer and a great saxophonist.

    Jonni

    Reply

    1. Barry’s avatar

      Hi Jonni,

      Glad you liked ‘Beat Me’. It is getting played very frequently now – which I am pleased about! If you are not up for this piece, perhaps you would like to try out one my others. Let me know.

      All the best,

      Barry

      Reply

  6. Ben’s avatar

    I am working up my Senior Recital for my Bachelors in Performance at Southern Illinois University in Carbondale, Illinois, USA. Date is TBD but will be around February. I am playing Ku Ku to contrast my program of the Larsson Concerto, the Heiden Sonata, the Hindemith Konzertstuck, and Holly Roller by Libby Larsen. It’s seems to be a great piece to change color with.

    Reply

    1. Barry’s avatar

      Hi Ben,

      It is great to know my music is getting played with in such company as Larsson and co. It will certainly provide some extra contrast in your program and maybe even a laugh or two.

      regards,

      Barry

      Reply

  7. Andrew Finlayson’s avatar

    Hello Barry.
    I played Black and Blue for my VCE Music exam. I did really well. Alot better than when you heard it earlier on in the year. But one of my classmates gave me a cold. So I couldnt get out the Altissimo. But it sounded great otherwise. And Janine C will want me to say hello :)

    Reply

    1. Barry’s avatar

      Hi Andrew,

      Good work on the exam, I’m sure that it went well. Don’t worry about the altissimo, we practise to perfection and hope for the best!

      regards,

      Barry

      Reply

  8. Lachlan’s avatar

    Hi barry
    Last year I played in the solo championships at bankstown, I gained a first with black and blue and was deemed the state champion!
    With the altissimo, I could never get it happening during practice, but when it came to the day, I got it perfect for the first time! Nerves I guess settled me in.
    I go to barker college in hornsby, and have recently discovered that Reed Music publishes music for Brendan Collins! My composition teacher in fact. Figures!
    regards, Lachlan

    Reply

    1. Barry’s avatar

      Hi Lachlan,

      The Black & Blue state champion – great work! Everyone should play better on the day – we must exceed our abilities when it really matters.

      Brendan Collins has some great music and be sure to have a look at his sax quartets – they are very catchy.

      regards,

      Barry

      Reply

  9. Matt’s avatar

    Hi Barry

    I’m just learning Beat Me for my year 12 solo performance next year and I’m having trouble getting the mutiphonics to speak. I can get the first one that appears (A,B and F#) but the others just dont want to come out.

    Is there any alternate fingerings that can be used?
    Also, what does c1 on the fingering chart mean?

    Lastly, with slap tounge is there any tips to get it sounding as good as you do it?

    Beat Me has to be one of the coolest peices in the world and I cant wait to get all the slap tounge and mutiphonics happening. Thank you for writing it.

    Regards
    Matt

    Reply

    1. Barry’s avatar

      Hi Matt,

      Thanks for playing my piece!

      The fingerings should all work, so although there are alternatives, I would suggest a slight adjustment of your mouth first. Trying playing a little more relaxed, or tighter and see what happens. Try more or less mouthpiece, try louder or softer, keep trying things until you get the sound to speak to your satisfaction. Once you get it to sound, you will find that it will continue to work with your normal embouchure with a bit of practice.

      C1, means Palm Key 1, ie the high D key. Each palm keys is numbered C1 – D, C2 Eb etc.

      Slap tonguing can take some time. The easiest one to start with is the reverse slap the one that starts with air and ends with the tongue on the reed. Nearly everyone can do that straight off. The normal slap, try reverse slap backwards – this is the one that can take time. All the best with it.

      regards,

      Barry

      Reply

  10. Carl’s avatar

    For my certificate of performance i’m going to play your arrangement of Czardas and i was wondering if you any tips or tricks for the staccato semiquavers in the faster sections. For my 8th grade i got a B+ thanx for the encouragement with black and blue.

    Reply