To start off the fall semester here’s a few more installments in the Kopprasch Project. No. 51 is an Arban-style exercise which really works out the often nebulous mid-low register. This one was particularly challenging for me because of where my embouchure “break” falls. Some practice techniques that helped included slurring everything, using B-flat fingerings, and playing the principal notes of each measure (the first 16th note in each group of 4). It’s still not perfect, but my consistency did improve over time. Suggested tempo in my edition is quarter=66-88. My tempo on the video is around quarter=66-68.

In contrast, No. 52 focuses mainly on scalar passages in the key of E minor, with a few leaps thrown in. Coordinating the various articulations is important, and the normally ultra-predictable Kopprasch does throw in a few twists. Suggested tempo is quarter=84-108, and I ended up around quarter=96-100.