How has the 24 Little Melodic Etudes helped me to develop as a musician?
Marcel Moyse has been an extraordinary influence on my flute playing and musicianship since I began the flute in third grade. The exercises in his book 24 Little Melodic Etudes were challenging when I was a young flutist and they are challenging to me still today as I am a rising senior at Oberlin Conservatory. Each exercise encourages extreme tone control, a wide dynamic range, and mature musicianship. There is always room for improvement in each short exercise, which makes them a life long pursuit. My favorite part about the exercises is that they have well composed phrasing and catchy tunes, which make them enjoyable to practice. Moyse’s instructions before the exercises are clear in describing the goal of the exercise so that his method can be reached to flutists generations later. I am lucky to have learned flute from my mother who studied with Frances Averitt at Shenendoah Conservatory, who studied with Marcel Moyse. I have learned so much from Moyse’s books such as the 24 Little Melodic Etudes, De La Sonorite, and Tone Development Through Interpretation and am convinced of his genius as a pedagogue. I will hold these method books close to my heart for as long as I am a flutist.