Meet the People—Music to Art, Art for Music
by Amy Ryan Stokes
Greetings! I’m Amy Stokes, a horn player, private instructor, preschool fine arts teacher, and mother of 4 in Dallas, TX. During covid, I decided to give a dream a chance and took on the study of watercolor art. I discovered I enjoyed painting in several styles: realism, illustration, and abstract. I particularly enjoyed painting in abstract to wind band pieces I loved. That led me to live art performances with the Lone Star Wind Orchestra, completing album covers for Eugene Migliaro Corporon’s YouTube channel, beginning my own private YouTube series combining nature and art, and enjoying commission work from many musicians who want a unique visual representation of pieces of music that have personal meaning to them…classical, jazz, pop, you name it. Many have commissioned my works as gifts for loved ones as well.
Lincolnshire Posy (Percy Grainger)
Worldwide Winds album
The Leaves are Falling (Warren Benson)
My process is listening to the music (on repeat!) as I paint, with no preconceived plan. I paint what I “hear” and let it all develop from there. Sometimes hints of reality find their way in and sometimes it’s pure abstract. As a bonus in this process, I’ve been able to emotionally invest in music I did not know very well before as well as more deeply contemplate my own favorites. It has also helped me develop a new dimension to horn playing in how I interpret the score. What a gift to be able to combine lifelong interests into a new type of career. My next project is designing cover art for pieces by a young new composer.
If you are interested in collaborating on a project, I’d love to hear from you. Please contact me at amyryanstokes@gmail.com.
Pedagogy Column—Air IN/Air OUT
Ideas that have helped me over the years*
by Mauricio Soto, IHS 57 Featured Artist
One of the most important aspects requiring attention when playing a brass instrument is the use and control of air.
Air IN:
We must breathe consciously: bringing air in (as opposed to simply allowing air into our bodies, unconsciously). When practicing, I always try to inhale to my maximum capacity. I try to think of numbers figuratively: trying to fill 90% of my lung capacity every time is my goal. Although I use the numbers figuratively—I don’t know exactly what percentage of capacity my students or I are using—over time, this will give me a frame of reference and make me very aware of the difference between a shallow breath (let's guess 30%) and a full one (let's guess 90%).
AWARENESS is the first step. I consciously try to breathe to my maximum capacity each time (and if I don't do this consciously, the intake of air will drop to the TV).
What is TV?
Tidal volume (TV) is the amount of air you move through your lungs each time you inhale and exhale while your body is resting. Tidal volume typically measures around 400 to 500 milliliters, which is considered to be 10% capacity of an average female/male respectively. So, this is the air amount that we exchange unconsciously, while at rest. This quantity is not enough to play an instrument which is approximately 12 feet long.
I always enjoy watching horn players trying an alphorn for the first time (at workshops, festivals, etc.) because almost invariably, they will [1] put the mouthpiece in the instrument, then [2] look at the far end of the instrument, realizing how long it is,and [3] take an exaggerated breath, sometimes making comical body movements while doing so.
The point is that since our instrument is rolled up on itself (to save space, among other things), it looks much smaller than it actually is, making us believe that a little air (TV) will be enough to play it, but that is not the case.
Rule-of-thumb when breathing: all movements in your body should be caused by the incoming air displacing or moving it, not because you are intentionally engaging a set of muscles.
So, let your shoulders rise a bit if needed, let your rib cage expand in all directions ("let your chest rise up and forward, like a pigeon," as a teacher used to tell me), and let your stomach protrude, etc., as long as all movement is caused by the inhalation.
When thinking of air, first check your posture: be as tall as you can be, but make sure your shoulders are relaxed. (I recommend reading about Alexander technique; it will lead you to know your body better.)
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As always, working daily with a metronome will improve our overall sense of rhythm and train the flow of the alternation between breathing and playing. Try this simple exercise to give you a pattern. First, set your metronome to 60 bpm and imagine a bar of 4/4 time: count 1, 2, 3 (set), 4 (breathe), and 1 (play). This will train your coordination, the determination to start a particular note, and allow you to be aware of how much air you inhale on the 4th beat of the preparatory bar. Repeating the pattern allows us to better analyze the variables of the process.
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Air OUT:
For me, the most important part of playing is what happens inside the body, in terms of how much air is used, the accuracy of the compression we create within the body, and how fast we can get to that compression/air speed needed to obtain to a particular note.
When I do harmonic series exercises, I try not to regulate the air so that it lasts longer. Instead, I concentrate on using all of the air as quickly as needed in order to produce a good sound.
Leaning forward against the instrument while blowing helps to keep my throat open—as opposed to bringing the instrument up to my face (which, for me, tends to close the airway).
In general, the better you compress the air inside your body, the less movement you will need outside (on the embouchure, for example).
Air attacks (starting notes without tonguing) have helped me to get rid of unnecessary tension in my embouchure as well. These also teach us to achieve the exact air compression needed inside your body…no less, no more.
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Sometimes, simple ideas are useful: it has been helpful for me and my students over the years to start each day thinking about blowing air forward—to reinforce the idea—as if blowing a pinwheel. We are not thinking in terms of going “up” or “down” but, rather, of [1] high register = fast air forward; and [2] low register = slow air forward.
This has proven useful because the concept of change of velocity in the air while blowing favors the flow (the continuity of the moving air column), another very important concept for me. Remember to minimize the movement of the tongue as well while playing, so as not to obstruct the path of the air as it leaves your body.
Finally, the most important thing is to be efficient, that is, to obtain the best result with the least possible effort (yet we will use lots of energy, certainly).
When trying new ideas regarding technique, always remember that you are working:
- to understand the concept; and,
- to train your body to incorporate the idea into your playing and be able to repeat it on a daily basis. These are two separate and completely different things.
Be patient and understand that when we make changes in the process (for most people, anyway), the results will most likely get worse before they get better (since we are leaving behind a process to which we had become accustomed, whether it was efficient or not).
Finally, the most important concept to remember every day: the embouchure reacts to the air, not the other way around.
*These are ideas that have been useful to me and my students over the years. This is not intended to be a scientific article on horn playing technique, but I hope someone may find it useful.
Pedagogy Column—The Seamless Slur
by Drs. William Stowman and Mike Harcrow, Messiah University
One of the most attractive techniques possible on a brass instrument is a beautiful, clean slur. The hornist, most frequently reading music written in the third and fourth octaves of the instrument’s harmonic series, often has the obstacle of intervening harmonics to overcome in slurring. In addition, rotor valves are set in a large number of possible arrays, some opening in the direction of the rotor port and some opening toward the airflow—or even a combination of these, depending on the brand and wrap. This has the effect of either smoothly directing (moving with) or slicing (moving against) the airstream; and some fingering patterns, like cross fingerings, seem to amplify the effect so that valve slurs can pop or flare without intentionally-practiced control.
Bumpy slurs, whether overworked, slotted lip slurs or the slurs adversely affected by valve configurations, result in sounds similar to playing a fretted string instrument, like a guitar, while what we all want are fretless slurs such as those which a can be produced on a cello or violin.
The harmonic series is the source of lip slurs, and we find more success with it, particularly its extremes, if we imagine it as horizontal rather than vertical. It is also a scale, the scale of the tube length through which its pitches vibrate; notes outside a harmonic series can only be played using some special mechanism (like a piston or rotor) or technique (like hand stopping on the horn). Blowing through the harmonic series can be imagined as knocking down dominoes so that you blow farther rather than tensing in an ascent or sagging in a descent. (This last concept is also excellent for building range, both higher and lower.)
We encounter lip slurs in virtually every piece of music we perform. The tendency, if one is conscientious, is to develop clean lip slurs; yet these can sometimes still sound distinct, almost tongued. Many players, then, learn to incorporate portamento (a smooth, sliding connection) between slurred notes, especially if the pitches are close together. This must be practiced on both lip and valve slurs in order to learn how to balance technique (how the lips move) and timing (when the lips move): too late and the slur is not smooth but abrupt; too slow and the intended portamento can turn into a glissando (see Robin Hahn’s brief explanation of these as separate and distinct vocal techniques), particularly when slurred intervals are larger. The slurred note which simply materializes from the note of departure is ideal. Within the sound you are playing, that next note is already in the room—existing as an overtone, but also audiated—waiting to be found.
Portamento should also be applied to valve slurs. Just as a trombonist must consider how and when to execute slurs which move with the slide motion vs. those which move against it, those performing on valved instruments must be attentive to these same concerns. Valve movement can, in many cases, add to the smoothness of the slur when, for example, using a longer fingering to slur upward to a note on a shorter fingering or vice versa. (In-tune alternate fingerings may certainly be utilized to enhance portamento, and an alternate fingering can be applied to what would normally be a lip slur as well.) Yet the lips are still engaged in the process; the evidence for this is quickly confirmed when buzzing a passage since the mouthpiece alone is “fretless.”
Portamento, for many players, is easier to accomplish on upward slurs, but it should be practiced on downward slurs as well. “Hard landings” on downward slurs are the equivalent of bumping into arrival notes on upward slurs. Renowned trumpet pedagogue Keith Johnson (1942-2020), known for his do-less-get-more approach to teaching, told students that slurring is simply playing one note and then playing the next without tonguing it.
In fast technical passages, portamento is less of a concern. Smooth, brilliant technique, slurred or otherwise, is much more a matter of energized and intensifying airflow. For lyrical passages, however, any flaw in production may be noticed by the listener. Horn players are notorious for relying on “wa-wa” articulations as a safety or coping mechanism (so much so that many electronic horn sounds have included this unfortunate effect). The portamento should not include this; when well-performed, it cannot, since consistent airflow is required for the connection.
Some practice techniques for developing portamento include [1] slow, deliberate movement between progressively widening slurred intervals, [2] buzzing slurs with no loss of energy on what is in-between notes to eliminate individual note shaping, [3] practicing timing and control in both lip and valve slurs for greater elasticity in lyrical passages, [4] making large intervals more “user-friendly” by seeing them as small ones (trumpeter Allen Vizzutti is a master of this concept), and [5] reversing articulations in practice, i.e. tonguing slurred passages and slurring tongued passages. Additionally, find models to emulate—and not just horn players. Great vocalists and string players can be wonderful sources for study. Last, record yourself regularly and evaluate your progress in creating captivating, singing slurs.
For nearly 20 years, Bill Stowman and Mike Harcrow have been working together leading the Brass Department at Messiah University in south-central Pennsylvania. Sharing their differing backgrounds and concepts has led to a comprehensive yet cohesive approach to brass pedagogy, and a high percentage of their graduates go on to pursue advanced degrees in music and professional playing careers. A highlight of their collaboration was the release of their Brass Department CD Luminosity, which—in addition to some 20th-century brass ensemble standards and the outstanding commissioned title track by James Stephenson—features primarily works of Giovanni Gabrieli. Enjoy this sample track from that recording.
Hornscapes CD (Parte 3)
por Ricardo Matosinhos
O CD Hornscapes apresenta várias peças que exploram diferentes possibilidades da trompa e da tuba wagneriana. Todas as peças foram compostas por trompistas, falantes nativos do “idioma” dos trompistas. A escrita idiomática para trompa é um tema sempre presente quando componho para este instrumento, e até a minha investigação de doutoramento foi sobre este assunto.
Seguindo a ideia de Douglas Hill sobre o Call to Action, no seu excelente livro Collected Thoughts, nós, como trompistas, temos a responsabilidade de incentivar compositores a escreverem para os nossos instrumentos. Melhor ainda, devemos nós próprios compor para o nosso querido instrumento, para que os compositores possam perceber as nossas capacidades e preferências.
Sei o que está a pensar: “Mas eu nunca compus para trompa”. No entanto, como trompista, conhece o instrumento melhor do que qualquer compositor, e isso é uma grande vantagem. A International Horn Society está a realizar um Concurso de Composição até 1 de dezembro, sendo esta a oportunidade perfeita para criar uma peça a solo para a Featured Division. Esta peça poderá ser tocada por estudantes e amadores, mas deverá conter material musical suficiente para honrar também performances profissionais.
Pode parecer uma tarefa assustadora para qualquer compositor, mas para um trompista é muito mais fácil! Confie em mim—não tenho um diploma em composição, mas as minhas obras têm fãs por todo o mundo e já foram interpretadas em vários países. Por isso, desafio a compor uma peça a solo para o nosso amado instrumento!
Com o lançamento deste CD para trompa (e tuba Wagner) e piano, decidi criar um pequeno concurso online para os assinantes da “Horn and More”, a newsletter da Sociedade Internacional de Trompa. Já ofereci dois CDs na edição de setembro e outros dois na edição de outubro. Mas se não foi rápido o suficiente, ainda há esperança! Irei oferecer mais dois CDs às duas primeiras pessoas que responderem corretamente às perguntas fornecidas na edição de novembro.
Se foi um dos vencedores das edições de setembro ou outubro, pode competir novamente. No entanto, se voltar a ficar entre os dois primeiros, atribuirei o CD à próxima pessoa na lista.
Divirtam-se e boa sorte!
Chamber Music Corner—Hans Huber’s Quintet for Piano and Winds, Op. 136
by Layne Anspach
Hello musicians!
This month, we will look at Hans Huber’s Quintet for Piano and Winds, Op. 136. Hans Huber (1852-1921) was a Swiss composer and pianist. He studied at the Leipzig Conservatory before returning to Switzerland. Huber was a church organist, choir director, and teacher, in addition to composing and performing as a pianist. Unlike many of his Swiss contemporaries, he did not restrict himself to the genres for which he wrote but composed in a variety of styles: staged works, masses, symphonies, concerti, and chamber music.
Like the quintets introduced in the previous few months, Huber’s work is scored for piano, flute, clarinet, horn, and bassoon. The quintet was written near the end of his life in the mid- to late-1910s. The sonata-form first movement, Adagio con intimo sentimento, begins with clarinet before passing thematic material to other winds with piano accompaniment. After the A theme is exchanged, the section transitions with winds alone into L’istesso tempo, ma molto leggiero, the B theme. Less somber than the A theme, B is light and jaunty, shifting to 12|8 from the original 4|4. The development is drawn out, alternating fragments of the A and B themes before finally settling into the recap, and the movement comes to a peaceful conclusion.
The second movement, Scherzo. Allegrissimo, follows a typical ABA form. Full of vigor, the A section theme passes quickly between winds and keeps the pianist quite busy as well. The B section starts calmly but builds with energy and chaos before returning to the A section to conclude. In movement III, Intermezzo. Allegro con fuoco, the clarinet is heard intermittently alone throughout. The movement moves from calm and delightful to agitated and intense, concluding with an energetic presto.
Finale. Allegro moderato starts with horn and piano. After the clarinet states the melody, the texture opens up to include all voices. The movement is full of ebb-and-flow as Huber passes the primary theme between instruments, experiments with textures, and shifts keys. The movement consistently returns from energetic passages to the theme in a solo voice, often the clarinet. Huber revisits themes from previous movements as well. I recommend listening to the ten-minute movement in its entirety to hear the way Huber moves between all the different ideas.
The reference recording is from the album Hans Huber: Quintett und Sextett für Bläser und Klavier (Musiques Suisses). The hornist on the album is Olivier Darbellay.
Horn on Record
by Ian Zook
Volume 19—Howard T. Howard
For this installment of Horn on Record, we will be listening to obscure (and very piano-oriented) chamber quintets, one each by Friedrich Kalkbrenner and Louis Spohr. Hornist Howard T. Howard is joined by New York City freelancers on a recording from 1972 on the Turnabout label.
Howard T. Howard (1936-2021) was a Principal Horn of the orchestra of the Metropolitan Opera from 1962-2007. He was born in Beatrice, Nebraska, and he took up the horn at age fourteen after relocating to Billings, Montana. He attended the University of Michigan, graduating in 1958 with a degree in music education before enlisting in the United States Air Force. He had a short tenure as Principal Horn of the Toledo Symphony, and then moved to New York to pursue his music career. While substitute teaching elementary school, he won a position with the MET Orchestra and was appointed principal horn in 1962. He shared co-principal duties with Clarendon Van Norman until 1985, and then with Julie Landsman from 1985 until his retirement.
Julie Landsman credits Howard as her first teacher, instructing her through her middle- and high-school years. When she joined him in the MET Orchestra, she recalls his favorite repertoire being the Mozart operas, Handel’s Giulio Cesare, and Strauss’ Rosenkavalier. He was known for his sensitivity in blending tone and phrase, and for his love for the orchestra and his enjoyment of performing through his final 46th season in the section. He was also active in the Newport Classical Chamber Series, frequently sailing his restored Herreshoff S-Class yacht to Rhode Island as well as around Long Island Sound.
Friedrich Kalkbrenner’s Grand Quintet, Op. 81 for piano, clarinet, horn, cello, and bass was composed in 1827. Kalkbrenner, German by nationality, settled in Paris where he gained fame as a pianist of exceptional virtuosity, worked at the Pleyel piano company and also oversaw a music school. He was the most sought-after and highly paid concert pianist from 1824-1833 but was eclipsed by both Chopin and Liszt whose music and performance styles reflected the burgeoning Romantic era.
The second movement, Andante quasi adagio, presents Howard taking the melodic role. He spins forth a Mozartean line supported by clarinet and strings and then has a short dialogue with the piano.
In the following Rondo, resplendent with dazzling piano lines, the horn answers the piano theme. Howard easily moves from the solo voice to a supporting harmonic and rhythmic chamber partner.
Louis Spohr also composed his Quintet, Op. 52 for piano, flute, clarinet, horn and bassoon in the same timeframe as Kalkbrenner, the early 1820’s. Spohr was a dominant figure on European concert stages as a violinist, composer, and conductor. Also written to feature the piano, Spohr’s Quintet does employ the winds more prominently.
In the opening moments of the first movement, Allegro, Howard shapes a beautiful line with soloistic portamento, melding seamlessly with the clarinet and bassoon.
The contrasting theme in the second movement has a flowing, cantabile shape. Howard’s smooth, pulsing articulation and suave solo conjures the operas of Verdi and Puccini, a style he would have perfected with his career at the MET.
Both works seem to have fallen out of favor for chamber music programming. Perhaps this is due to their pianistic demands, or simply that they linger in the shadow of the prominent works for piano and winds by Mozart and Beethoven. Thankfully we have these renditions, the only chamber music recording credited to Howard T. Howard, to inspire those looking for different options in this genre.
Thank you for reading Horn on Record!
Student Column—Building Endurance
by Inman Hebert
For horn students, by mid-semester, playing obligations can seem never-ending. Between ensemble concerts, solo work, and chamber music (let alone any gigs, extracurricular playing, or marching band), rehearsals and performances can become an endless cycle of preparation and fatigue. Somehow, through this constant stream of playing, we are expected to have the endurance to practice in addition to the numerous other hours of face-time. Due to the taxing physical demands of horn playing, which often become more exacting as students enter performance-based careers, developing and maintaining proper endurance habits is crucial to positive perseverance.
A major endurance-related misconception contends that as students play more, their endurance will naturally develop alongside greater demands. The claim, however, oversimplifies the numerous factors which determine a student’s physical endurance. If we see endurance development as simply pushing ourselves for more time every day, then we risk developing poor habits that, in fact, hurt endurance-related pursuits later. Understanding the causes of poor endurance while practicing proper playing habits is critical to a more intelligent approach to endurance development.
Without a well-developed breathing technique, the ability to play a long time without rest will remain elusive. In connecting breath support to endurance, we must return to the fundamentals. Is our breathing shallow? Are facial muscles or shoulders tense on inhalation? Are the arms collapsed against the rib cage (which limits capacity and support)? Is the release of airflow steady? Relaxing keeps the airways open and allows for deeper breathing. Tension in all the wrong places inhibits the development of endurance.
Fortunately, doing exercises, both airflow-related and physical, can help our breathing technique and improve stamina. Breathing exercises often involve practicing inhaling and exhaling at various speeds to help us produce a steady stream of air. Standing close to the wall, is the airflow consistent so that a piece of paper remains in position until the exhalation stops? These practices teach us to take in as much air in one second as in four or to control the expiration rate. Air pressure management can help the hornist learn how to harness a small amount of fast-moving air for the high range and a more significant amount of slower-moving air for the low range. As an added benefit, these exercises alleviate stress and reduce tension. In recognizing the importance of airflow in endurance, students can work with mentors and review the abundance of resources to improve their breath support.
Additionally, cardiovascular exercise aids breathing and, in turn, improves stamina. Aerobic workouts attune us to our breathing muscles and train us to take quicker, more efficient breaths. In addition, physical activity such as running or biking also lowers our resting heart rate over time, which can help us calm ourselves more quickly before a performance and reduce the tension that affects our breathing. Incorporating anaerobic training, such as strengthening our core muscles, supports good posture, and this opens up breathing technique and helps prevent fatigue.
As tension inhibits effective breath support and, subsequently, endurance, excessive mouthpiece pressure restricts blood flow to the lips and contributes to limited endurance. A periodic reexamination of the embouchure warrants attention. Is the mouthpiece pressure distributed appropriately between the upper and lower lips? Is the mouthpiece being pushed in some inhibiting direction? In identifying solutions, students should revisit fundamental aspects of horn playing to help identify the reasons behind the pressure and work on eliminating them. We should strive for as relaxed an embouchure as possible, one that leaves only a slight mark on the lips.
While excessive mouthpiece pressure hinders circulation, proper warmups facilitate blood flow to the facial muscles. Horn players' warmups vary widely in length and composition, but instead of heading straight for the high notes, a student should focus on a productive warmup that activates all aspects of playing and helps prevent injury. Moreover, after practice, a warm-down prevents stiffness in the lips and preserves the embouchure for the next day.
After achieving proper breath support and appropriate mouthpiece pressure, the idea that endurance comes with consistent, focused practice becomes true. Three hours of daily practice spread out over a day becomes the standard of effort. However, in embracing the three-hour standard, how do students create a balance that does not overwork facial muscles in their busy playing schedules of rehearsals and concerts in addition to individual practice? One practical approach counts a lesson, rehearsal, or concert as one of those three sessions, while ensuring that the other sessions of the day are separated by a significant time margin to allow the facial muscles time for recovery. While time invested matters, improvement comes from using a methodical approach and not overworking yourself. Thoughtful practice is the key to improved stamina.
Building endurance evades simple answers but, rather, creates an interconnected web; however, if we set aside pride, assess fundamentals, and seek to understand the different components of stamina, we can work, with discipline and intelligence, to yield better results. Progress may be gradual and, at first, resemble a roller coaster rather than a straight ascent, but the satisfaction will be worthwhile when walking onto the stage confident in our endurance.
