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PDF: 11 Gallay Etudes, edited by Josef Schantl

John Ericson
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Jacques-François Gallay (1795-1864) wrote many great horn etudes that are certainly worthy of use by modern horn players. Standard, published versions are available, but alternate editions can shed new light on how to use them practically today.

A great example of an alternate edition is to be found in the public domain PDF featured today, Gallay etudes extracted from Volume IV the Große theortisch-praktische Horn-Schule of Josef Schantl (1842-1902). Originally published in 1903, the best known portion today is Volume III, which was reprinted in 1941 in abridged form as Preparatory Melodies to Solo Work, edited by Max P. Pottag. The primary focus of Volume IV is transposition, and included for purposes of that study is a rather heavily edited edition of 51 of the Op. 6 etudes and 13 of the Op. 5 etudes of Kopprasch.

With them are found these 11 etudes by Gallay, which are also rather heavily edited but perhaps better suited to the needs of valved horn players than are the original versions, especially with the suggestions for transpositions and many alterations of dynamic and nuance.

Gallay-Schantl-snipIn this PDF edition I have rearranged the order slightly to fit the page layout but otherwise they are unmodified. The numbers are those given by Schantl. Also there are a few blank areas due to the layout and focusing only on the Gallay etudes from the Horn-Schule.

The PDF of this public domain music may be accessed from our PDF download library or from the link below:

Josef Schantl is not that well known today, but was a major teacher and player of the late nineteenth century. He was a Principal Horn of the Imperial and Royal Court Opera and the Vienna Philharmonic, and has been credited with founding the Vienna Waldhornverein. Among many significant performances he performed on the premieres of Brahms second and third Symphonies and also the third and eighth Symphonies of Anton Bruckner.

To close, I have enjoyed putting together the recent series of Gallay PDF publications. I find Gallay had a melodic gift and really was aspiring in these to reach a higher level as a composer than most of his contemporaries who composed etudes. If you have never explored Gallay, this packet is a great place to start.

From the Mailbag: Right Brain, Left Brain, and Connecting with Students

John Ericson
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Several years ago a question came in. It was one that I found interesting to ponder at the time and still find interesting to ponder.

The left side of the brain is the seat of language and the right side is related to creativity. Of course it is just pop psychology (and a myth), but the general idea is that a person who is more logical would be “left brained” and more creative would be “right brained.”

scumbag-brainAnalyzeSome teaching styles won’t connect with certain students, and one way to explain the situation would be that your “brain” style is the opposite of the student. Paraphrasing, the question that came in had to do with teaching and connecting with students who were different than you were. The person with the question felt they were naturally left brained but that a number of their younger students were more right brained in their approach.

Turning this to an application in horn teaching, it would seem to me that one of the extremes of horn teachers are the “song and wind” types, inspirational perhaps but focusing on visualizing what you want to play [right brained]. The opposite extreme of teaching would focus on logically breaking down, analyzing, and solving problems to work toward the goals of the student [left brained].

Either style actually can work great with the right student. If you are considering colleges for study in particular, be aware that teachers have different styles and some won’t be a good fit for you.

A good teacher will however be able to flexibly hit some of the middle ground between the two approaches, depending on what is heard in the actual lesson and what seems like the most effective way to get toward solutions with an individual student. Understanding the learning style of a student is part of good horn teaching.

For those teachers that have a style more toward analysis, the one caution I would offer is that for sure teachers have total power to give people complexes instead of helping solve problems. “Paralysis by analysis” can tie some students up in knots; students do at times need to simply imitate good models and aim for a good sound.

For those teachers with a style more toward song and wind, the caution would be to realize that for some of your students the magic won’t happen — visualizing right notes can help, to a point, but you can visualize all day and still not have a low range. There is a point where you will have to analyze and address directly the technical issues behind the problems.

This is the sort of topic that it would be interesting to see expanded out into a real study and is part of what makes teaching the horn such an interesting field.

Image credit: Bruce Hembd

Session: Building Great French Horn Sections

John Ericson
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This week I will be presenting a session at the Arizona Music Educators Association annual conference on the topic of “Building Great French Horn Sections.”

There are a few articles in Horn Matters related to this general topic. From Bruce Hembd I would note:

And from myself I would note:

UPDATE: Also check the dedicated page on this site For New Hornists for much more.

I will touch on these topics and more in my session. I have designed the presentation so that I can go several directions depending on the size/interests of the audience and will be flexible with the exact content. But I plan to start with several specific issues related to hand position, fingerings, and instrument choices, and from there head toward the topics of switching people to the horn (about 50% of the horn students I have taught at the college level started on another instrument) and the range of common problems (“horn mysteries”) seen at the high school level. My book Introducing the Horn is a related resource I also plan to give all those in attendance at the AMEA session.

The big picture is that that not enough players start on or switch to the horn. Which is the challenge I would put out to Horn Matters readers – be doing your part to build up and support the numbers of good horn players, especially at the high school level. Support their directors! And to those teachers that are, thank you for your hard work.

On Dealing with New Compositions with Bad Horn Writing

Bruce Hembd
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grumpy-cat-modern-horn-muiskA recent discussion on the Facebook Horn People discussion group brings up the topic of living composers and how they write for the French horn.

This has been a topic here at Horn Matters, one that both John and I have explored. In “Composers who Can’t Write for the Horn,” John Ericson suggests that composers should talk to horn players in order to answers questions and concerns with writing for the horn.

As horn players we see a lot of horn parts written by composers who don’t really know how to write for the horn. First, the point of this post: if you are a composer and you are not sure about your horn writing, talk to a horn player.

In “4 Tips on Orchestration and Horns,” I echo John’s sentiments with a few suggestions of my own. This being said, what does a horn player do when confronted with a new composition that presents insurmountable challenges? Here are a few tips:

  1. Give it the “old college try.”
    In other words, try your best in earnest to play what is written on the page. If the end result is less-than-good and ends up sounding like a mess, swallow your pride and let it stand. If the composer wishes to have a more literal translation of their musical idea, they should step up and ask you about it. A smart composer will re-negotiate the work in order to accommodate.
  2. Abbreviate questionable passages.
    If a particular passage seems impossible to play, try abbreviating it in some way. If a certain passage is too high, for example, play it down an octave. If it is technically out-of-reach, try leaving out a few notes.
  3. Talk to the composer.
    If the composer is available, have a talk with them. The preference would be to do this as an aside, and not during a rehearsal where conflict could arise.
  4. If there is a conductor, talk to the Maestro.
    If the new piece you are playing involves a conductor (who is not the composer), that person may be able to mediate or negotiate on your behalf.

This being said, if the composer is committed to their artistic idea and you have no choice in the matter. the best that can be expected is option #1. Perhaps a future generation of horn players will be more capable of rendering what the composer wishes.

On Tchiakovsky and the Horn

scumbag-tchiak2Along these lines, I must confess to a personal bias with the orchestration techniques of Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky.  While I enjoy listening to most of his works, I am not a fan of how he writes and orchestrates for the French horn.

His Fifth Symphony, for example, contains one of the most well-known horn solos in the symphonic realm. Without a doubt, this solo is one of our treasured moments as horn players. But, the remainder of the symphony presents some difficult challenges with loud dynamics, isolated and exposed passages with the woodwinds, and long, technical passages of non-stop playing.

If an assistant is available, the principal horn can rely on that person for help and relief. If an assistant is not available, compromises may need to made in order to make it to the end in one piece.

PDF Duets and Etudes by Gallay from the Grand Method for the French Horn by Meifred, Gallay and Dauprat

John Ericson
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Concluding for now this series of PDF downloads from 19th century method books are a pair of great downloads from a publication with a great title, the Grand Method for the French Horn by Meifred, Gallay and Dauprat.

While the title makes it sound like the great horn teachers Joseph Emile Meifred, Louis François Dauprat, and Jacques François Gallay all sat down together and worked out a big book of exercises and such, in reality this was put together by a publisher in London around 1880. If they had proper permission or if they just stole the materials from the method books of the three I don’t know. Copyright laws back then were not quite what they are today.

The best of the materials, in terms of use on the modern horn, are these two PDF packets of duets and etudes. These originated in the Gallay Méthode pour le Cor, Op.54, which was published in 1843. The duets and etudes show the melodic gift of this prolific composer of horn music well. It was all intended for the natural horn, but the etudes in particular will still be a challenge for the modern horn player.

Among all the PDFs I have posted recently these musically are the best. The only negative I would note are the French style rests. You will get the hang of reading them pretty quickly, though, and in terms of the rests the musical context is always clear.

PDFs of this public domain music may be accessed from our PDF download library or from the links directly below:

The 12 etudes are actually two groups of six; first up are six melodies followed by six characteristic studies. Note also there are two duets (exercises) and then 12 duets. Those are also from the Gallay Méthode, presented in the same location preceding the duets.

For more on Gallay please see this prior Horn Matters article on his Unmeasured Preludes. There I offer this brief introductory biographical info as well:

One of the most recognized nineteenth-century horn teachers is Jacques-François Gallay (1795-1864). Gallay studied with Louis-François Dauprat (1787-1868) at the Paris Conservatory, entering his studio at the relatively late age of 25. In addition to performing as an operatic and chamber musician, Gallay succeeded Dauprat at the Conservatory, serving on the faculty from 1842 until his death in 1864.

PDF Etudes from the Oscar Franz Method

John Ericson
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Oscar Franz (1843-1886) was one of the most prominent teachers and performers of the horn in the late nineteenth century. Franz spent most of his career in Dresden, where he taught at the Dresden Conservatory and performed Principal Horn in the court orchestra. Franz was well respected in his time, and it is to him that Richard Strauss (1864-1949) dedicated the orchestral score of his Horn Concerto No. 1, Op. 11 (1883).

Oscar Franz wrote a number of teaching materials for the horn. His Grosse theoretisch-practische Waldhorn-Schule [Complete Theoretical and Practical Horn Method] was first published around 1880. In this method Franz put forth many of his ideas for performing on the horn.

In terms of useful materials today, the most useful are the etudes from the method. They fall in two sections in the “Newly Revised and Enlarged Edition” that I referenced, which is copyrighted 1906. Pages 60-82 contain 29 etudes that I would rate as easy to difficult enough to be of use with an advanced student, and pages 86-102 contain the “10 Grand Concert Studies,” difficult etudes which have also been published separately from the method.

I have created PDF versions of both of these sections to make them more of use to the horn community today. They are all pretty usable in lesson situations and for personal practice, and I believe teachers will find them especially handy “filler teaching materials” to have around in situations where students are new or between books. The PDFs may be accessed from our PDF download library or from the links directly below:

To close, the difficult horn part that may have cost him his life (!) was the topic of a prior article in Horn Matters, well worth a quick read as you start into the more difficult etudes of the above:

PDF Horn Duets from the Henri Kling Horn-Schule

John Ericson
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Henri Kling (1842-1918) spent most of his career in Geneva, where he was professor of horn and solfège at the Geneva Conservatory from 1865 until his death.

Kling’s Horn-Schule was, according to his obituary, first published in 1865. However, the work was not listed in Hofmeister’s Handbuch until the 1874-79 edition, indicating a possibly later date of original publication. In any event, the Horn-Schule is musically progressive, beginning with easy études and moving to difficult études and orchestral excerpts.

Of the materials in the method, among the more useful materials today are the duets. This set of 31 starts easy and ends with a group of attractive duets from operas of Mozart and Mehul. The first 20 are suited to the natural horn, and the remaining 11 are more suited to the valved horn. The duets may be accessed from our PDF download library or from the link directly below:

For more, also enjoy this short, humorous Kling quotation in Horn Matters:

Review: Good Vibrations – Masterclasses for Brass Players

John Ericson
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For a final book review of 2014 we have a new publication from Randy C. Gardner, Good Vibrations – Masterclasses for Brass Players. This publication is a substantial 156 pages, spiral bound. All the musical examples are drawn from standard horn literature and the tips given all are extremely applicable to the horn.

The book is full of tips, which are to be found on virtually every page. Chapter topics include breathing and embouchure, articulations, range, flexibility, endurance, lip trills, stopped horn, practice, and more. The tips flow naturally from the topics at hand.

The opening chapter, on “The Foundation,” is full of concepts that would apply to really any musician. I like very much that the book is based on tips, fleshed out with many useful exercises in much the manner that you are in a lesson or masterclass with Gardner. The general format makes it very easy apply concepts and ideas of use to you as a reader.

For a concrete example, the book has a very helpful section on double tonguing (a topic not covered at all by Farkas in The Art of French Horn Playing) which is followed by several musical examples. The first is from the Symphony No. 3 of Mendelssohn, third horn. It is one I am very familiar with as the former Third Horn in the Nashville Symphony, played it on the audition and in the orchestra! It is one that I learned single tongued. It did not even occur to me as a student to double tongue it – I only learned of this option working with students much later. Of the placement of the excerpt in the section on double tonguing Gardner notes

Some hornists have the ability to single tongue these passages at [quarter note] = 126 or faster. Most do not. Regardless, I suggest that these passages be used to assess and practice your double tonguing technique. Insist on clarity and evenness of articulation before focusing on speed! A fast version of a mess is still a mess. Perform cleanly.

That is just one bullet point of hundreds in this publication. You will find many thoughts of use to you in improving all aspects of your playing.

Helping you find those thoughts, another feature I very much appreciate is this book has an index. So for example if you are looking to work on your accuracy the relevant passages are on pages 3 and 109-115. Not all horn publications include an index, which enhances the usefulness of the publication.

There are a two minor negatives that should be mentioned to close. First, if you want to find the Mendelssohn 3 excerpt I mentioned above you won’t find Mendelssohn in the index, you will have to find the section on double tonguing and search from there. The index could be expanded (an index of musical examples would be an excellent addition) in a future edition. The other minor negative for me is the title. Good Vibrations – Masterclasses for Brass Players of course contains materials of use to any brass player, but at the same time the musical examples and even entire chapters are very much horn centered. It will be “read” at least at first glance as being a “horn book” by players of other instruments rather than a book aimed evenly at all brass instruments. Other brass players will still find much of interest if they take the time to read into the publication, and will want to reference the “Skill Assessments” presented at the end of the appendix from the CCM brass faculty. Perhaps in a future edition specific materials for players of other brass instruments could be integrated into the text more fully.

This is a great book and is one that horn players will want to pick up, it is chock full of information and a bargain at $29.95. The Amazon listing is here.

Review revised

Brief Reviews: Recent CD’s by Gross, Havlík, and Van Dreel

John Ericson
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Continuing our series of brief reviews we have two 2014 CD releases to close out the year.

First up alphabetically is a recording of double concertos, “Czech-American Horn Duo,” on the Summit label. The hornists are Steven Gross and Jiří Havlík, who perform a program of works by Joseph Reicha, Rosetti, Habermann, and “Haydn” (the latter work being almost certainly not by Haydn and likely a work of Rosetti – an issue they acknowledge in the lilner notes – my take on this topic is here). As to the CD itself, it is a great program of Classical horn double concertos, beautifully performed with an overall sound profile much as if you were out in the audience. Several of these works have rarely if ever been recorded and are well worth a look for anyone interested in the Classical double horn concerto repertoire, one that is surprisingly extensive (Rosetti alone wrote at least seven double concertos!). The listing on Amazon is here.

The other CD for today is “New Millennium Music for Horn” featuring hornist Lydia van Dreel on the Quadre Records label. This CD features a group of very new works composed 2004-12 for a variety of combinations of instruments involving horn. At first glance I was worried that it would not stand together well due to the wide variety presented, but actually the program is compelling and flows very well from piece to piece. Works range from traditional combinations such as the J. M. Gerraughty Trio for Horn, Violin, and Piano (mvt. 1 only) and the Kenji Bunch Shout Chorus for woodwind quintet,  two horn quartets, and other more exotic combinations –  including two works for natural horn and electronics (by Eve Beglarian and Thomas Hundemer). It is a great set, beautifully performed and produced, and I look forward to more of this type on the Quadre label. The listing on CD Baby is here.

Why is my Horn Sharp?

John Ericson
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One common question is that some models of horn seem to be built rather sharp, as in the main slide needs to be pulled quite a ways, perhaps so far that it is pulled as far as possible and you are still sharp. Why?

It could be your playing, but there are other factors that are part of it.

better-sharpIssue 1 — Old School Designs

I am not going to name brands in this article, but some of the classic horn designs are often reported to be quite sharp, which I would agree with. Among the many possible reasons for this are two major factors:

  1. They were designed originally to be played with a rather covered hand position and
  2. They were designed to be played with a rather deep and large bore mouthpiece

To point 1, as a student in the early 1980s I was actually somewhat shocked to first hear live performances by a couple of the older, big name players of that day. They used rather covered hand positions of a type rarely heard today. A more covered hand position sounds “darker” (more muffled, really) and results in a lower pitch level for the horn.

To point 2, the large mouthpieces used in the past are not nearly so often used today. A deep mouthpiece with a large bore produces a lower overall pitch level on a horn, and a shallow mouthpiece with a small bore produces a higher overall pitch level.

The combination of these two factors has left these classic horns of older design history playing sharper and sharper in a modern context. Time has seen the horn world trend toward smaller mouthpieces and more open hand positions, aiming for a tone with more clarity and presence out in the hall.

Issue 2 – Horns Aimed at a European Market

Second, the horn market is international, and most areas outside the USA are not playing at A=440. A horn that is made in and for an area where A=442 is standard will need to be pulled out a good bit to produce A=440. Some instruments will accommodate this pitch issue better than others in terms of slide lengths.

And More …

It should also be mentioned that an older horn with leaky valves may get a bit wonky for pitch, valve rotations need to be right, no objects stuck in your horn, oral cavity shape, etc.

Know what your slides do!

And even a very good horn, if played with a mouthpiece that does not fit right or suit the horn, may have strange pitch tendencies.

This article is obviously not comprehensive, but will hopefully relieve a bit of stress if you feel your horn is constantly sharp. In short, while there could be some production problem on your end of the horn, if it is persistently sharp it is not necessarily your problem, you may need to either pull out more in general or, if that is not an option, get a different horn. Be sure in any case to try other horns and have others try your horn to know better what the tendencies are you are fighting.

For more on tuning your horn see this article.

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