Clarinet by Gray - Teaching

Teaching

Mr. Gray was appointed Full Professor in Clarinet in the UCLA Music Department in 1993 where he also teaches the Woodwind Chamber Ensemble class. He has a Clarinet studio of 12-15 private students each year, and his students perform regularly in the UCLA Philharmonia, UCLA Wind Ensemble, Woodwind Chamber Ensembles, Collaborative Piano Chamber class...plus their individual Junior, Senior and Graduate Recitals.

During the course of his teaching, it often becomes necessary to include career counseling, i.e. suggesting "combination careers" to include teaching, playing, music management, etc., in order to increase the students' options after graduation. The importance of learning all the instruments in the clarinet family is also stressed. For those students interested in studio work, he often takes them to sessions with him so that they can observe first hand what takes place. The strong emphasis on accurate sight reading in such work points out the need for...

For Curriculum and Application Information

Undergraduate Counselor
Al Bradley
310.825.4768
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Graduate Counselor
Sandra McKerroll
310.825.4769
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For possible Master Classes or Clinics outside of UCLA, contact Mr. Gray's personal managers:
Valerie Bernstein and/or Ina Scheid
310.287.1031
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Mr. Gray's Students

Often, parents and students ask about my former students. Here is a partial list of some of my former students and their many accomplishments:

Students Should Diversify

From an article in Clarinet/Saxophone Journal of Great Britain
by Laurence of Mar - September 1989

Gary Gray, one of the leading American clarinettists, was in England a few weeks ago, and although the pleasure felt on learning that he was to give a workshop at the Royal College of Music was tempered by my failure to dodge official duties on that day, I was delighted that we would be able to have a few hours together during the following week. Even this prospect was threatened, by floodwater on the Bath-London line, but eventually we surmounted all difficulties, having first discovered that where there's a will there may be a permanent way.

Thoughts on Clarinet Playing, Teaching and Music in General

Simply put, I try to help my clarinet students become the best musicians they can be...whatever their career objectives. If the learning process is correctly defined as "guided growth," I try to guide well and stay out of the way when possible. After the first year or two, I think the teacher-student relationship, especially in the area of private lessons is one of gradually letting go and motivating the young instrumentalist to become a more and more independent artist/scholar.

Some Ideas About Phrasing

The Windplayer Magazine - February 1994

I was giving a master class and the students played well. But when I asked, "What did you have in mind for the phrasing of this?" —most of them had very little in mind. And if they did, it wasn't coming out of the clarinet. It didn't sound sincere. It's so tempting to concentrate on the fingering, that's all some students think about.

International Chamber Music Program in Florence, Italy

California State University - June 17 - 30, 2007

Gary Gray joined the Alexander String Quartet of San Francisco for an International Chamber Music program in Florence, Italy on June 17-30. This was sponsored by CSU Summer Arts, a special division of the California State University network.

The contact information for this CSU Summer Arts program is:
csusummerarts.org

The contact musician is:
Professor Sandy Wilson
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(415) 405-0688 ext.2

Qualified students of strings, piano and clarinet were accepted to this two week program. They rehearsed and performed public recitals, with coaching by the Alexander Quartet and resident faculty, including Prof. Gray.