by Dr. Brian McLaughlin

“Do you want a career in music, or a life in music?” Henry Mancini’s question is still valid after all these years. Our colleges, universities, and conservatories are filled with young horn players who imagine that they will one day grace the sections of America’s orchestras. Performance majors walk the halls of every institution, and over the years I have heard many of them tell me thatthey are absolutely certain that they will never teach. “I just want to play,” they say. But all of us are part of a long tradition of teaching. The great players of our craft only got that way because someone taught them, and 99% of them teach as a part of their performing careers. It is a responsibility for us, as participants in the genealogy of the horn, to pass on what we have learned. We all are keepers of the flame.

So what does a “life in music” look like? For most of us who make our living as musicians, it is a patchwork of various musical activities, including performing, teaching, writing, arranging, conducting, and more. Each person emphasizes their strengths, and various components may take center stage for a while as the demands of our lives change. For those of us who will make teaching a major part of our musical lives, there are three interdependent topics that are good to keep in mind: musicianship, standard of acceptability, and musical imagination.

The essential thing for everyone who strives to be a good teacher is that they also strive to become a fine musician. While there are some great teachers out there who, for a variety of reasons, no longer perform, there are none who are not outstanding musicians. Learn all you can about theory, form, and history. Learn about the lives of composers. Learn about the lives of the great horn players of the past. Listen to performances of great violinists, pianists, vocalists, and other wind instrumentalists so that you can go beyond the mechanics of horn playing. Listen to the way they phrase their lines. Educate yourself so that your interpretation is informed. Let the music guide your musical decisions, rather than letting the difficulties of horn playing dictate them. Our instrument is so technically demanding that it is easy to get caught up in getting the notes out and miss the emotional communication of which the horn is capable. For students involved in a music education degree, this is your primary goal: while you are in school, do all you can to become the best musician possible.

Video Highlights and a slideshow from IHS 49

 English version

Ein Statement für das Wiener Horn

Als langjähriger Musiker und 1. Hornist der Wiener Philharmoniker (in Wien gibt es kein „Solohorn“) – wie auch als Lehrer an der Musikuniversität Graz, war und ist für mich der Klang das Allerwichtigste am Musizieren.

Wie allgemein bekannt, liegt die herausragende Bedeutung des Wiener F-Horns weniger an der technischen Spielbarkeit als an der Tonqualität – insbesondere werden die weichen Bindungen so geschätzt und bewundert.

Doch woher rührt die Qualität des „Wiener Horn-Klanges“?

Die Weichheit des Tons hat einerseits mit der Länge des Instruments zu tun; es schwingen mehr Obertöne mit – und dadurch klingt es voller. Zum anderen liegt sie an der Mensur. Und als weitere Faktoren sind zu nennen: die Luftführung; ebenso der Stoß, der nicht zu hart sein darf. Und natürlich kommt es auf die Bindungen an, die beim Wiener Horn besonders schön sein können.

Die meisten Menschen glauben, dass die Möglichkeit, so weiche Bindungen zu spielen, von den Ventilen abhängt, das stimmt aber nicht. Die Qualität der Bindung liegt an der Rohrlänge, die zwischen dem Mundstück und den Ventilen liegt. Die Länge der Luftsäule vom Mundstück bis zum Ventil ist beim F-Horn ca. 1m 60cm / 1m 80cm lang; wohingegen es beim B-Horn (beim Doppelhorn) so um die 40cm oder 30 oder 20cm sind. Eine so kurze Luftsäule kann freilich nicht so komprimiert werden wie eine fast 2m lange, die ist beweglicher. Dadurch klingen die Bindungen am Wiener Horn so viel weicher. – Aber man muss natürlich auch wissen, wie man das macht, also wie man die Töne anblasen bzw. den Luftstrom bei der Bindung „führen“ muss. (Und das alles muss man „üben, üben, üben…“)

Aber auch die Form des Mundstücks (und hieran ist vor allem die innere Form hervorzuheben) ist ein wenig anders als bei einem Doppelhorn-Mundstück; sie ist nicht so bauchig, kesselartig, sondern trichterförmig. Des Weiteren kommt es auf die „Seele“ des Mundstücks an, also auf seinen mittleren Teil [die „Seele“ ist der zylindrische Teil des Mundstücks], und die ist beim Wiener Mundstück sehr lang und endet am Schluss dann wieder trichterförmig.

Deep satisfaction and happiness overcame me when I was challenged by my dear Prof. Ab Koster to give my contribution to the Pedagogy Column of the IHS Newsletter. Standing out as a brilliant idea, this column has presented very interesting and inspiring articles, It demonstrates once again the IHS’s role and what a truly International Society it is. Without dwelling too much on the matter, I would like to share with its readers some of my main ideas about the horn and about playing it.

The way to success is very complex and depends on a variety of interconnected aspects. As with anything in life, it requires balance and stability. On this occasion I should, however, point out a few factors which I deem to be crucial:

1 – SOUND

This is, in my opinion, what distinguishes the horn most from all other instruments. It is certainly what makes us hornists fall in love with it and what delights the audience. There will always be more powerful instruments than the horn, which might be more virtuoso, produce more high notes, lower ones, and so on. But few instruments are capable of giving delight with just one simple sound and to touch any soul. Take some of our most acclaimed orchestral solos, such as Brahms’s Symphony No. 2, Tchaikovsky’s Symphony No. 5, Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9 (4th horn), Mendelssohn’s Nocturne from ‘A Midsummer Night's Dream’, Mahler’s Symphony No. 1 , and so on. Although these might not be the best examples of virtuosity, they represent outstanding moments of the orchestral repertoire which any audience is likely to surrender to. Why? For no other reason but the instrument’s sound capacity. To sum it up, the first fundamental is, in my opinion, sound quality. It should be something that identifies us, our voice and our soul. Regardless of the different concepts of sonority, what matters to me most is that sound is centred, clear, and that it projects itself. Embouchure, the position of our hand in the bell and the way we breathe and use the air play a decisive role in the quality of our sonority.

2 – EMBOUCHURE

Embouchure is crucial and defines our essence as hornists. A strong and stable embouchure is fundamental. The objective is to play competently the whole of the horn’s register and to be flexible while preserving the quality of sound and tuning. I recommend practising lip vibration every day, with and without the mouthpiece. Studying long tones is very useful as it strengthens the embouchure and improves resistance and the quality of sound.

3 – AIR

Air has to be flowing all the time so as to ensure horn playing is a natural action, not a forced one. It is important to apply the appropriate quantity of air for a given musical sequence, the speed of air necessary to avoid vibration disruptions and ensure enough expertise and support for the high register or intervals to not cause any problem.

4 – TECHNIQUE

Individual technique should be practised every day. I consider it important to start exercising it already during the daily warm-up period. The better and more complete our warm-up is, the better will we be prepared. It is essential that we are fit and that every technical aspect is covered. In case of difficulties in organising one’s studying time, I recommend using a table where the type and the amount of work done every day and/or week can be specified and followed. Anything we practice less will be more difficult for us to accomplish.

5 – PERSONALITY

In music, as with any other form of art, the personality of each performer influences their work. When working with my students, I try to share my experiences with them, my knowledge and my ideas, and I try to encourage them to be individuals and to add their personal touch. I have learnt to appreciate, respect and admire different ideas and concepts. Uniformity allows for predictability, but it reduces creativity and interest. Musical choices and options should be grounded and understood in order to be credible and consistent. Nowadays it is very easy to have access to information, to travel the world physically or virtually, to discover different traditions and concepts. It is for us to observe and absorb what we have learnt and to create our cultural background. A musician is an artist who transmits a message or feelings to someone listening. For the message to be successful, it has to be felt and personified. We need to be courageous enough to take the risk of being different and unique.

Much more could obviously be said. I have shared some of my thoughts and some of my main fundamentals of horn playing. Horn is something we fall in love with, either as a listener, or as a performer or professor. The will and the fun involved in discovering and learning more are a daily tonic. Enjoy it all!

J. Bernardo Silva April 2017 (Translation: Filipe Costa)

J. BERNARDO SILVA

He has been member of the Orquestra Sinfónica do Porto Casa da Música, in Portugal, since 2000. He is horn professor at the University of Aveiro and the Espinho Professional Music School.

He has presented himself in several countries across Europe, as a solo performer, chamber musician and orchestral player. He performed as a guest artist in several brass and horn festivals and symposia, including of the International Horn Society and Lieksa Brass Week, in Finland. He has been a very active chamber music musician, is a founding member of the horn quartet Trompas Lusas.

He was awarded the First Prize in the Philip Farkas Competition organized by the International Horn Society in Lahti, Finland in 2002.

His discography has several solo works, chamber music and as an orchestra member.

J. Bernardo Silva is a Dürk- Horns artist.

www.jbernardosilva.com