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Neighbors | Abby Slanker.Guest clinician Noa Even played her saxophone along with Canfield Village Middle School eighth-grade saxophone players Oct. 13.
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Neighbors | Abby Slanker.Guest clinician Noa Even worked on fundamentals with Canfield Village Middle School eighth-grade saxophone players Oct. 13.
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Neighbors | Abby Slanker.Guest clinician Noa Even directed seventh-grade saxophone players as she helped them with their fundamentals Oct. 13.
By ABBY SLANKER
Canfield Village Middle School Band Director James Volenik invited guest clinician Noa Even to work with his seventh- and eighth-grade saxophone players on Oct. 13. Even is an Assistant Professor of Saxophone at Kent State University and holds a DMA in contemporary music from Bowling Green State University, a master’s from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and bachelor’s from Northwestern University.
As a guest clinician, Even has presented numerous master classes and clinics at schools across the country and abroad.
“Being a guest clinician is a good way to facilitate what the band directors are already doing and teach the students basic skills. We want to build their skill sets. A guest clinician might have a different way of teaching or explaining something, and it will just click with a student and he or she will just get it. That’s why I have guest artists in my classes. My way of teaching may be different from theirs and they can share theirs with my students and help them learn, ” Even said.
Even met first with the seventh-grade saxophone players and then the eighth-grade saxophone players. She worked on fundamentals, such as embouchures, tuning and playing scales, pausing to work with students individually.
“Fundamentals may seem boring, but they are very important to get even better,” Even told the students.
Even also uses her clinics as a recruitment tool.
“The clinics I do at middle schools and high schools, and at the college level, also serve as a recruitment tool. I invited all the students here to Saxophone Day at Kent State University in November. It’s a day full of clinics and demonstrations which the students can attend and enjoy,” Even said.
Even brought some professional equipment for the students to try, on behalf of reed, mouthpiece and ligature manufacturer Vandoren.
“I brought some samples to introduce to the students so the could see what is available to them. Many are not using professional mouthpieces. I want them to realize equipment does matter,” Even said.
Even said a guest clinician also helps the band director.
“As a guest clinician, I can also give band directors ideas to work on with their students,” Even said.
Even is a Cleveland-based saxophonist dedicated to sparking deeper interest in the arts of today through the performance of contemporary music. Her chamber ensembles, Ogni Suono and Patchwork, regularly commission composers, work with student composers and provide community outreach. Ogni Suono’s album, “Invisible Seams,” features some of the duo’s first collaborations. Supported by a grant from New Music USA in 2015, the duo launched SaxoVoce, a long-term project exploring the wide-ranging ways of synthesizing saxophone and voice. Patchwork’s recent performances include Warner Concert Series at Kenyon College, Frequency Series at Constellation in Chicago and Omaha Under the Radar.