Home Blog Page 113

Hornmasters: Schuller on Mouthpieces

John Ericson
-
2

Gunther Schuller was certainly aware of The Art of French Horn Playing, and also chose to start his 1962 publication Horn Technique with the topic of instruments and mouthpieces.

A tool used to produce fine art

On mouthpieces Farkas took the general stand that you needed to start with something middle of the road and learn to play on the equipment you had. Schuller gets to some of the same ideas as Farkas (avoiding extremes, and eventually offering the advice to “pick a good one and stay with it”) but takes a quite different track in his discussion. The mouthpiece is a tool that will enhance your artistry.

If anything can be said at all in a general way, it is that a mouthpiece should be a compromise, if it is to enable the player to render with authenticity the many styles required of the modern player, form the lightest Mozart to the heaviest Mahler and Strauss.

While many players and teachers approach the choice of a mouthpiece from a purely physical point of view, I would suggest that this is not enough if we are to consider the playing of the horn as a fine art, not merely as a means of making a living. Since we are dealing with music, the physical requirements of a mouthpiece must be balanced against certain musical requirements.

… I think it is basically unmusical and a fallacy to pursue a specific tone per se, without considering the musical requirements to which end the tone should be only a means. In certain quarters in America and in certain countries in Europe, there are definite ideas on this subject …. A large or fat tone that remains inexorably the same is of very little musical value in a performance of a Debussy or Mozart piece, when that tone relentlessly penetrates the light-textured orchestral fabric….

Reading between the lines, Schuller (who had been Principal Horn in the Metropolitan Opera Orchestra) played an Alexander 103 horn, and was not a fan of the big horn and big mouthpiece that produced at all times a large, fat tone (i.e., an 8D with a large Giardinelli mouthpiece). His opinion on the topic has actually held up as well, as that type of “old school” equipment is hardly seen used by fine professional players in the USA, and the Alex 103 is in fact the most popular horn at the professional level worldwide.

Continue in Hornmasters series

Searching French Horn: Decline in Interest or Rise of Junk?

Bruce Hembd
-
8

This of course may mean absolutely nothing, but according to Google Insights for Search, interest over time in the term french horn is declining in the grand scheme of Internet searches.

From my angle, a great deal of things might explain this downward trend including most of all, an exponential growth in the Internet and Internet junk.

Hornmasters: Farkas on Mouthpieces

John Ericson
-
3

Philip Farkas chose to begin The Art of French Horn Playing with a discussion of mouthpieces and horns. As this was his starting point, we will also begin here with our extended series of quotations and comments on a variety of topics from master horn teachers.

Conventional wisdom is sometimes bad advice

After a review of the elements of mouthpieces (bore, cup, rim, etc.) Farkas, with a photo similar to this of five cut away mouthpieces, relates,

The best advice about mouthpieces, stated in capsule form, would be this: get a mouthpiece which is generally accepted as “normal” …. It takes experience to know what “normal” is, but study two dozen different models and you will soon recognize moderation. Be sure the one you choose has no obviously bad qualities; make certain it is comfortable on the lips; then stick with it until it is mastered.

If the truth be told, no one mouthpiece or change of mouthpiece is going to revolutionize anyone’s playing ability.

Starting at the end of the quote, that last item is really bad advice. Actually, a better mouthpiece absolutely can revolutionize your playing ability. Sure, playing something “normal” is good advice generally, but when it comes to mouthpieces you really do need a good one.

What was “normal” in 1956?

At this point it would be good to step back and look at the state of mouthpiece design in the United States at that time. While the inner diameter of most commercial mouthpieces of the period was around 17 mm, there were two major schools of thought. For Farkas “normal” was a somewhat shallow mouthpiece with a somewhat wide rim and a bore around #16. However, for players that came out of the east coast tradition of the time typical mouthpieces were fairly deep, had a narrow rim, and a much larger bore in the neighborhood of #4 using numbered drills for measurement. [A number 1 drill produces a bore that would be a very large size for a horn mouthpiece and number 24 would be quite small. The system of numbered drills is explained further in this article.] So for those players that considered a large bore mouthpiece to be normal a Farkas-Model mouthpiece was rather small while for players oriented around the type of normal mouthpiece of Farkas the large mouthpieces were rather large.

Of the mouthpieces specifically mentioned in The Art of French Horn Playing, the view of all of these from the rim end is revealing; all are by east coast standards medium wide or wider. The most notable of the group is the the “block letter” FARKAS-MODEL, which was made by Schilke before Farkas became associated with Holton and is generally similar to (but better than) a Holton MC or a Schilke 30. Much more on the FARKAS MODEL may be found here .

When you get down to it, of the other mouthpieces in the Farkas book, one common thread is if you play on all of them they are not as good as the FARKAS-MODEL! So maybe there was some marketing plan there. From that time and forward into the 1980s the most widely used line of mouthpieces was actually that made by Giardinelli. I have an extended review of the classic Giardinelli mouthpieces here. Their original line no longer in production; what is available now are not mouthpieces that a pro would consider using today.

One size does not fit all

Going back to the last point in the quote above from Farkas, I really have to strongly disagree, sometimes a change of mouthpiece can make a HUGE difference for a student! The experienced teacher knows that someone using a very generic, old school mouthpiece from a line with low quality control is really going to benefit from switching to a modern mouthpiece from one of the most recently introduced lines. Beyond the CNC lathe, high quality production we now also have a variety of inner diameter sizes that can totally open up the playing of certain players. One size does not fit all and thousandths of an inch really do matter. If you have been using the same generic mouthpiece for years, it is time to look for something better.

Continue to next article in Hornmasters series

Why was the Valve Invented?

John Ericson
-
0

A question that comes up periodically is that of why was the valve invented. There is a myth that is repeated often that they were invented as a crook changing device and only later did players realize that they could use them to play chromatic passages. Myth? Yes, this is absolutely a myth. I wrote an extended article on the topic that was published in The Horn Call 28, no. 3 (May, 1998), with related materials to be found published in the Historic Brass Society Journal 9 (1997).

The money quote — Stoelzel wanted to make the horn chromatic

Check out the full article just mentioned, but this is the money quote, direct from hornist Heinrich Stoelzel himself in a letter written to the King of Prussia in December of 1814.

My horn can play all the notes from the lowest to the highest with the same purity and strength without having to stop the hand into the bell. The mechanism of my invention is most simple, can be employed easily and quickly and everyone who plays the instrument can make himself thoroughly familiar with its application in a few days. This device renders the many crooks superfluous and makes it possible for the artist to play all the notes without losing any of the instrument’s tone. This mechanism can also be applied to the far more imperfect trumpet and even to the bugles. Because the trumpet, whose compass hitherto consisted of 13 notes and through my invention has received 24 additional notes, which sound just as beautiful and pure as those 13 and for which now composers may write in not so limited fashion, but in any major or minor key as they wish, I believe that I do not exaggerate in promising your Majesty that by means of these instruments music may be made which will astound the world.

That one quote pretty much puts the nails in the coffin of the myth so far as I am concerned, a topic I did research out pretty thoroughly.

How did a myth arise that valves were invented to change crooks?

I think part of what happened is players looked at some of the odd notations in some horn parts of Wagner (especially Lohengrin) and thought that he was maintaining some old form of notation that came from the earliest valved horn players. Actually, Wagner was out in left field! That is a topic for another day but for those researching horn notations in Wagner I suggest a reading of my article, “Joseph Rudolphe Lewy and Valved Horn Technique in Germany, 1837-1851,” The Horn Call Annual 9 (1997), 23-35, which covers this angle of the topic in great depth.

For a bit more:

Desert Dreams

Bruce Hembd
-
0
  • Post Super Bowl thoughts while deserted

I had an unexpectantly long trip back from Tucson yesterday, due to the freeway between Phoenix and Tucson being shut down. I took the only other route available – a 2-lane back route.

My grand, American Super Bowl Sunday was spend in the back desert with prickly pear and saguaro cacti whizzing by. It was kind of fun.

If only the reviews for orchestra concerts were as detailed as sports commentary were my thoughts throughout Super Bowl Sunday radio coverage. Coaches, owners and players get broader coverage and credit for successes and failures.

Since most, if not all, sports commentators were former players or coaches, the coverage is fairly balanced. This aside, fans want, crave and demand to know all that insider information. There is nothing like someone who has been there to tell that story.

In contrast, how many times have we read classical music reviews where it seemed as if all the music came from the baton – and nowhere else?

In an ideal, fantasy world, music critics then would also provide the same kind of insider coverage that sports TV currently does. Would classical music fans enjoy similar, more down-to-earth, blue-collar coverage?

For myself, airy persiflage gets a bit old.

[A portion of a “Random Monday” post, updated 2021]

Follow the Leader

Bruce Hembd
-
0

In pop psychology an interesting term comes up – “enabling,” as in do not enable an addict by supporting their habit in any way, shape or form.

Quite frankly, the word has gotten a bad rap – enabling can be a good thing too!

Enabling your leadership to perform well, for instance, can empower not only the leader, but also yourself.

Faith in the system

That person may hold authority over you, but it is in their best interests to see you perform well and be happy with your job. It is perhaps in your best interests too, to allow your supervisor the chance to execute the plan their way first. They are in a better position to view the big picture and any shifts that might be going on.

Bear in mind too that this chain of leaders and followers will most likely have many levels — much like a pyramid narrowing to the top.

The glass house

Think of trusting the leader in your circle, in a way, as an allowance. Helping them get the job done well might be something to bank on later.

Beyond this, just strive to be in-tune with the chain whenever possible – go with the general flow. There is no point in routinely insisting you are correct if it is not copacetic with the big picture.

Trust is a fragile thing; it can be broken.

The leader/follower relationship is symbiotic and requires two working parts. If a breaking point occurs, talk it out if possible before getting angry and acting out.

Unless your boss is a 6-foot bunny tweaked on sugared cereal, tricks are for kids. Try to have faith in your system instead.

If it ultimately fails you, you can always start over.

A Cycle of Improvement

Bruce Hembd
-
0

Many times, less is more.

If you are looking to fix a problem, a plan of action is required. Aggressively attacking a problem without a plan can waste a great deal of time and energy. It can also be disastrous.

Sometimes even in the most thoughtfully planned circumstances we might catch ourselves drifting – a little nudge is needed to get things back on target.

Making a plan

1.) It all starts with a plan.

It should be well-thought out and written down.

  • What is the problem I wish to tackle?
  • What is the agenda?
  • What is my deadline?
  • Can this deadline have multiple stages?
  • Is this deadline concrete (like an audition) and time-sensitive,
  • Or is it an abstract goal – more like an ideal?

What logical system can be created and molded to solve this problem?

Try not to haggle with too many minor details at the beginning of this cycle. No point in getting bogged down – this is a plan for action and it starts with a prototype.

2.) Act.

Now is the time for action – no questions.

  • Document your progress with a journal and all other available tools.
  • Be diligent and confident in your plan.

3.) Pause, and reflect.

Things are becoming more in focus now. Might as well step back and ask some questions in order to intensify your efforts.

Now is the time for questions – no actions. Take the time to slow down and look back.

Assess and refine your prototype method. Try to balance judgment and baseless re-action with hard evidence. Your journal becomes invaluable at this time.

  • How is my progress going in relation to the deadline?
  • Is the deadline realistic?
  • Can the method be tweaked in some way in order to foster more improvement?
  • Does it need a revamp – a complete start-over?

Then, — as the typical hair shampoo bottle says on the label — rinse, lather and repeat. When the goal is achieved, you may even find yourself at a new level of mastery.

‘Tis a gift to be simple

The best cooking recipes have only a few simple ingredients artfully put together by a master chef.

What happens when too many ingredients are mixed in, or too many cooks get involved? Like the old axiom says (..and I love the music reference in this link), the soup gets spoiled.

With soft determination, aim to maintain some simplicity in your methods. Hush those outside voices, keep up a good sense of humor, and you may not only just accomplish your goals, you might also be victorious – with your sanity intact.

Putting it into Perspective

Bruce Hembd
-
1

Sometimes you just suck.

Its one of those days where one or more things are not going right. It could be a physical problem – a tired or strained lip, for example — or a lapse in mental concentration.

Rather than beating yourself up, why not put things into perspective?

When you think about it, how odd that I make money by buzzing my mouth on a hollow tube.

The Words of the Great Horn Players are not Infallible Words

John Ericson
-
0

We have some very thoughtful commentators on Horn Matters. University of Iowa horn professor Jeffrey Agrell wrote a great comment in reply to my post “PC on Farkas” in the series Things Horn Teachers Say, a comment well worth featuring in full as he addresses a rather difficult topic, that of as he words it “the Great Horn Players.”

As I once wrote in a Horn Call article, “Beware of Philip Farkas”, to me the principal danger of the Great Horn Players (teachers, players, book authors) is that people stop thinking for themselves, stop analyzing, observing what’s really happening, stop making their own decisions, stop looking for new ways to do things better and more efficiently. If the Great One said it, it must be true for everyone, all the time, amen, no further thought required. In fact, not everything works for everyone all the time. There are a lot of variables in people and what works for people. The Great Ones are a good place to start, but don’t let them keep you from making your own considered decisions and especially don’t let them kill your own spirit of inquiry and inspiration. The zen koan “if you meet Buddha on the road, kill him” means to me that you should not let any expert make all your decisions for you. Learn from the great ones, but don’t accept everything uncritically. Think about everything you do and see if there is a way to do it better, more efficiently, rather than just blindly follow a prescription. It’s easier and simpler just to “follow orders” than to wrestle with problems and work out your own solutions from what you know and observe. But it can pay big dividends.

We welcome thoughtful comments at Horn Matters, keep the discussion rolling.

Tips on Auditioning for a Summer Festival (or anything else)

John Ericson
-
0

Yet more very timely insider information on taking auditions, in a post from the original HTML Horn Notes Blog dated 3/25/05.

Another little project for me now is listening to and ranking all the horn auditions for summer study at the Brevard Music Center in North Carolina. We have some good, strong applicants; I look forward to the summer. As I did with the All-State auditions (see the topic below [reposted here]) I took some notes along the way which hopefully will be of use to future applicants, as follows.

Don’t give a dull performance of your solo work. Sound like a soloist! The auditions for Brevard are a mixture of taped live auditions and recorded auditions made by applicants. Many auditions open with a solo work such as Strauss 1 or Mozart 2 or 4, which are good choices, but please don’t be dull and bland. With the live auditions I suspect what happened is some applicants fell back into “default mode” and did not play their best. Auditions recorded by the applicants themselves were more puzzling to me though, as often the solo would be dull but immediately followed by well performed excerpts. In those cases I suspect that they had learned the solo long ago, probably in high school, and had never really worked on it again with their major teacher to bring it to a higher, more musically advanced level.

A taped audition needs to be perfect. I have to assume that an audition CD you submit for consideration is really the best that you can play, so if you are missing many notes, miss rhythms, or are out of tune I have to rate down the tape pretty hard in those areas. I can be more forgiving in a live audition.

Related to the above, rhythms must be perfect. People don’t just happen to miss a rhythm, usually it was learned wrong and has not been fixed yet in lessons.

Especially in the Tchaik 5 solo, you must be in tune with yourself. It is a pleasure to hear Tchaik 5 in an audition if it is in tune and played well. Surprisingly often the 23 combinations are tuned low. This I really can’t understand; you don’t need to compromise tuning at all in 23 combinations. I suspect that the players are just used to it being flat. Check it with a tuner to see if you have fallen into this trap.

Prepare your audition with your teacher or teachers. If this means finding extra lessons somewhere, find them! For many applicants the audition is pretty uneven. I know sometimes things get missed, some works go better than others, some days are better than others. But often I have a sense that the the applicant I am listening to could not possibly have worked recently on some of the works they chose with their teachers.

Put the best thing first. If you are making an audition CD, be sure that what you put first is great. If you are playing a live audition and they let you chose what you want to start with, be sure the selection you choose sounds great. If in doubt what to start with, consult with your teacher as to what would be the best starting work for you. While big, difficult works are nice, quality is more important than what exactly you chose to play.

Finally, if you apply follow through and give it your best shot. I am always waiting to hear players with that spark of musicality and an effortless quality, you could be that player. Good luck!

The one small update for 2010 being I no longer am on the Brevard faculty. But these ideas for sure hold up still for school and summer festival auditions.

1...112113114...156Page 113 of 156
© Newspaper WordPress Theme by TagDiv