Pädagogischer Beitrag - Christoph Eß
English version
Ich freue mich sehr, auf Einladung von Prof. Ab Koster einen pädagogischen Beitrag für den IHS Newsletter zu schreiben. Ich werde heute über die kammermusikalische Arbeit und die Wichtigkeit des gemeinsamen Musizierens innerhalb meines Unterrichtes sprechen.
Ich habe erst kürzlich die Professur an der Musikhochschule Lübeck übernehmen dürfen und bin momentan dabei, eine neue Klasse aufzubauen. Hierfür ist es für mich von besonderer Wichtigkeit, eine gute Mischung aus noch sehr jungen, gerade im Bachelor anfangenden und schon etwas älteren Masterstudierenden, die auch schon erste Orchestererfahrung sammeln konnten, zu vereinen. Jeder kann so etwas vom anderen lernen, sich selbst weiterentwickeln und sich mitziehen lassen von denen, die schon weiter sind. Eine Klasse, in der jeder den anderen respektiert und bei der das Gefühl eines Zusammenhalts vorrangig ist. Das habe ich selbst in meinem Studium in Stuttgart so erlebt und möchte ich auch in meiner Klasse von Anfang an als oberstes Prinzip festhalten.
Um dieses zu erreichen, habe ich gleich zu Beginn Hornquartette innerhalb der Klasse zusammengestellt, mit denen ich zusätzlich zum Einzelunterricht, der natürlich Hauptbestandteil des Studiums ist und immer sein sollte, auch im Ensemble arbeiten kann.
Durch meine langjährige Kammermusikerfahrung in den verschiedensten Besetzungen, aber auch hauptsächlich in den letzten Jahren durch das Quartettspiel mit german hornsound weiß ich, wie wichtig das gemeinsame Musizieren, das Auf-einander-Hören und vor allem das allgemeine Kommunizieren (auch neben dem Spielen bei der Probenarbeit) ist. Vor allem die Kommunikation mit den KollegInnen und Studierenden braucht man später in jedem Beruf, ob man nun OrchesterhornistIn, KammermusikerIn oder PädagogIn wird. Deshalb achte ich auch innerhalb der Quartette darauf, verschiedene Alters- und Niveaustufen zu vereinen und zusammenzubringen. Wir arbeiten anhand der Quartettliteratur an der Intonation, der Balance, dem Zusammenspiel und an einer gemeinsamen Artikulation und Phrasierung, um so einen Quartettklang zu erzeugen, bei dem zwar jeder als individueller Hornist zu hören ist, bei dem aber trotzdem die Klangqualität und Homogenität als Ensemble im Vordergrund steht. Des Weiteren versuche ich auch, die Studierenden möglichst viel Kammermusik mit Streichern machen zu lassen, denn die Art, wie Streichinstrumente phrasieren, differenzieren und kommunizieren können, sollte auch für uns HornistInnen trotz der technischen Schwierigkeiten, die unser Instrument betreffen, das erstrebenswerte Ziel sein und wir müssen den Anspruch haben, dieses nachzuahmen.
Pathways at IHS 50
by Adam Wolf
The life of a freelancer in L.A. can be, at its worst, merely interesting, but at its best, absolutely magical. Every day is a different gig, with different players, in different cities within Southern California. The one thing we all have in common, however, is that we all spend tons of time on the freeway. What we all do in that time varies. Some like books on tape, some use the drive time to call friends and family we otherwise don't have time to call, or like me, some of us listen to podcasts. One day I was driving to a gig, listening to some nerdy podcast, and thought to myself, “I'm going to try and find a podcast dealing with horn.” From here, a troubling realization happened. The horn community, arguably the most nerdy, most communal, and most curious of all the instruments, didn’t have a dedicated podcast! This simply wouldn’t do. It was at this point, where I reached out to my good friend Scott Bacon, and the brainstorming began.
Since Pathways started almost a year ago, we've heard many compelling stories starting with Bernhard Scully, and have since heard a dozen interviews with many more waiting to be released. Thanks to our wonderful listening audience, thousands of people have already gotten to come along for the journey as we dive into the road that leads some of the names we know and love to become the players we aspire to be. We have many exciting events planned for year two of Pathways, and one of those experiences is LIVE podcasting.
Thoughts from the North: Horn Playing and the Inevitable Aging
The Horn Call Article of the Month - IHS Members Only feature
from the May 2008 issue
by Frøydis Ree Wekre
I have to admit it – as I am getting older I am always looking more eagerly for the new voodoos of horn playing, stuff that will make my performance better, my tone more centered, stable and brilliant, my low range more rich sounding, my high range easier, my staccato more effortless (where can I find that one?), my intonation impeccable, and my rhythm completely perfect (this would be wonderful.)
What else – oh yes, a light weight horn that is easy to hold, combined with some extra weight on the valves and on the mouthpiece to avoid cracking up in fortissimo, the new stick arrangement to hold the horn up while playing so my arms can stay relaxed all the time, combined with frequent visits to the health club to strengthen my arms, a little practice device that encourages less pressure on the upper lip, another one which will give me the “Super Power Embouchure,” and plenty of stuff for enhancing my breathing capacity and speed of air and thus the projection.
My mother used to say – when confronted with the wishes for new clothes from her teenage daughter – youth decorates itself! Only now am I beginning to understand fully what she meant. The costs of fixing the hair, and of getting more coverup-and-take-the-attention-away-kind-of-clothes-and-accessories seem to be increasing with age, and for good reasons.
As a brassplayer at this point of my life – I am a model 41 – I wonder why I still have the urge to perform – and therefore to practice? When I first started in the Oslo Philharmonic at the age of 20, my older colleagues were incredibly generous in moving down from their seats to let me progress rapidly from fourth horn (which was written in my contract, but I never played it, except in Beethoven‘s 9th) to third and soon on to the first and the hottest seat. I thought this had to do with their age (they were around 45) and that this was a logical development in every horn player’s life. After 40, not to mention 45, you must expect to play less good, and therefore please get out of the hot seats, the sooner the better. Make life easier on yourself, don’t practice on weekends, take it as it comes. Let the young people sweat!
Interview of the Month - Gene Berger, Host of IHS 50
version française
Kristina Mascher-Turner:
What are three good reasons for horn players to come to IHS 50 this summer?
Gene Berger: The theme is "The Golden History of the Horn.” My idea was to revisit the traditions of being a horn player and our beautiful history of literature and performers throughout history. Being the 50th anniversary I had to use the word “Golden.” We will be reminding everyone of the last 50 years of the Horn Society and monumental personalities and events. We will have a daily lecture series revisiting events of our past. Special thanks to President Jeffrey Snedeker for working on the details of this lecture series. We will have many participant ensembles to perform in during the symposium. I want everyone of all levels to play and to meet new and old friends during our week.
KMT: What about being a host has surprised you the most so far?
GB: The surprises of modern times. There have been issues that emerge from a legal standpoint. The university systems are very reactive to issues with minors, money transactions, employment issues with contracts of guests on campus. There are many details that continually change inside the business system in a university. Policies can change, and someone may not know until a form is submitted. Most of the time, it is a proactive policy change due to legal issues and institutions trying to protect and understand laws or rule changes at the state and national level.
KMT: Can you tell us a bit about the Featured Artists who will be inspiring us during the symposium?
GB: We have the winner of the International Horn Competition of America, Joshua Williams as a featured artist. He will have a solo recital and will also premiere a concerto with the US Army Field Army Band by Amir Zaheri. Frank Lloyd will also premiere a composition by Howard Buss with the band the last night of the conference. David Amram will perform with Eldon Matlick’s jazz ensemble and will host a performing lecture for all called “ Jazz Fundamentals, Blues in F.” I have invited guest lecturers Frøydis Ree Wekre, Gregory Hustis, and Carolyn Wahl who will present master classes and lectures pertaining to all membership of the IHS. I have invited several new faces to the featured artist list including Robert Danforth from the Indianapolis Symphony, Kevin Rivard from the San Francisco Opera, Jonathan Hammill from the Tokyo Symphony, and Leelanee Sterrett from the New York Philharmonic. Some returning faces will include Karl Pituch, Elizabeth Freimuth, and Denise Tryon. I have invited the Alloy Horn Quartet from the Chicago area to be our featured ensemble. We are fortunate to have the US Army Field Band in residence at the symposium for 2 days. We will end with a finale concert by the band.
The Horn in Australia
IHS Members Only Feature
From The Horn Call, February 2010
by Marilyn Bone Kloss
Australia has a long and rich history of horn playing and composition. Barry Tuckwell is its best-known player by dint of his world-wide reputation as a soloist, but he was not the first horn player in Australia, and many more excellent players fill the ensembles and conservatories today.
Early Hornists and Horn Societies
Two of the best-known hornists in Australia in the 20th century are Alan Mann and Alexander Grieve.
Alan Mann played in the Sydney Symphony Orchestra and taught at the Sydney Conservatorium. Barry Tuckwell (born 1931) moved to Sydney at age 16 to study with Alan and be his assistant in the orchestra before he moved to London. Alfred Hill (1869-1960) dedicated a Concerto for Horn and a Sonata for Horn and Piano (1947), later adapted as Serenade for Horn and String Quartet, to Alan Mann. Graham Powning has written and arranged many works for four horns, one called Homage to Alan Mann (1998).
Alex Grieve (1923-2006) was a member of the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra for thirty years, played in many other orchestras, founded the Melbourne Horn Club, and was a teacher and a supporter of community music. He was an IHS Advisory Council member (1971-1977), and was given the IHS Punto award in 1986 at Detmold, Germany. In Australia, he was awarded the Order of Australia medal in 1994 and the TOAN (Australian National Orchestra) Lifetime Achievement Award in 2005.
"VISIONS OF SPAIN" A Horn & Piano Soirée
JAVIER BONET, Horn and MIRIAM GÓMEZ-MORÁN, Piano
Weill Recital Hall at Carnegie Hall, New York City
Wednesday, February 7, 2018 at 8 PM
"Vision of Spain" is a monumental series of 14 paintings by Spanish master Joaquin Sorolla" commissioned by millionaire Archer Milton Huntington for the Hispanic Society in New York.
In the recital "Visions of Spain, A Horn & Piano Soirée," Javier Bonet and Miriam Gómez-Morán will present their own vision of Spain, throughout a very uncommon chamber music ensemble: french horn and piano.
A very original program which will encompass not only one of the most characteristic pieces for this ensemble such as Adagio & Allegro by Schumann, but also the American premiere of Juan J, Colomer's work "Visions", followed by a very challenging and interesting part: a selection of pieces of their last CD "]ust for Fun", presented in America for the first time. Transcriptions of pieces originally written for voice, violin, cello or piano by Turina, Ravel, Granados, Piazzola, Cassadó or Sarasate among others. All these will require the grandest virtuosity and lyricism from the horn, not only technically but also in sound and color.
All in all, "Visions of Spain, A Horn & Piano Soirée" is a different view of the Spanish musical flavor, connecting the folklore to the contemporary, throughout a marvelous couple formed by these two instruments.
IHS members: log in to see your special 20% discount code for tickets to this recital!
This concert has been made possible by the Programme of the state agency Acción Cultural Española (AC/E)
An Australian-American Collaboration: Thoughts on the making of The Christmas Album
by members of the Queensland Symphony Horns and the American Horn Quartet
Geoffrey Winter: The last AHQ CD production was one I approached with both excitement and sadness. After 30 years of playing chamber music with some of the most talented musicians I have ever had the privilege of working with, I knew that this Christmas CD would be our last project together. At the same time I was excited to have the chance to work with other talented hornists. In the previous 5 years I had several opportunities to work with many members of the QSO horn section, so I knew the production would be a treat. I wasn't disappointed! Some of my favorite recollections include hearing both Lauren and Viv, along with Charlie of course, playing low horn licks that made my jaw drop. And Charlie showed a gifted talent as a percussionist. And I will also never forget the bone-shaking experience of hearing a didgeridoo up close and personal - I had no idea just how loud and mesmerising it would be! Bravo to Harry Wilson! And also to Pete, Malcolm, Lauren, Viv and Ian, who all played an essential role in making this last AHQ CD come to life. It was a fitting epilogue to the career of the AHQ.
Vivienne Collier-Vickers: There are some events in your life that you know you will remember. But not for the reasons you might think. The AHQ have worked together for decades carving out a career as a spectacularly successful horn quartet, touring the world and making recordings that sell to quite a niche market. The QSO horns, while we enjoy playing as a section both professionally and personally, would never have expected to be a part of such a unique experience as recording, not only a CD with the AHQ but a Christmas one at that! For the AHQ, it was a commemorative CD as it was the last they would do as a group; nevertheless, they showed their experience and expertise throughout the sessions of recording the wonderful music compiled for the CD. To them it all seemed like it was ‘all in a days work’.
