Ab Koster
Feierliche Verabschiedung von Professor Ab Koster nach 39 Jahren Lehrtätigkeit an der Hochschule für Musik und Theater Hamburg.
von Petra Röpenack-Schäfer
Musik verbindet – hier speziell das Horn. Über fast vier Jahrzehnte hinweg war es das verbindende Element zwischen Lehrer und Studenten. Der Empfang zur Verabschiedung am 20. Mai 2019 verdeutlichte eindrucksvoll, dass es Prof. Ab Koster mit Bravour gelungen ist, sein hornistisches Können und Wissen an die kommenden Generationen weiter zu vermitteln. Zusätzlich war und ist Prof. Ab Koster aufgrund seiner Persönlichkeit für viele Studenten menschliches Vorbild. Diese Tatsache wurde im Verlauf verschiedener Reden immer wieder hervorgehoben. Eine äußerst fruchtbare Kombination die dazu geführt hat, dass 94 % seiner Studierenden eine Stelle inne haben und den Beruf des Musikers ausüben.
Study on facial muscle activity and facial-skin movement while playing the French horn
by Takshi Hirano
While playing a French horn, many facial muscles form a playing-related configuration adjusting to the mouth piece, the so-called “embouchure”. Many French horn players said embouchure is very important to play appropriately. Additionally there are many textbooks related to playing brass instruments written by famous players, and these books noted that how important embouchure is. Therefore all brass players should train and develop their embouchure every day in order to control sounds. However, there are few studies on embouchure with scientific approach. Thus our team investigated the activity of the embouchure-related five facial muscles and facial-skin movement around the mouth during sound production by 10 trained French-horn players.
The research questions are:
- Does facial muscle activity change by pitch and loudness?
- Does embouchure configuration change by pitch and loudness?
We used small surface electromyograms (EMGs) to get facial muscle activity, and small reflecting markers to get the data of changing skin movement. EMGs were attached on the right-side of the face and small markers were attached on the left-side of the face (see Figure). Using his/her own French horn with their mouthpiece, each participant performed four sets of three successive 6 sec sustained tone productions at different levels of sound intensity. We calculated the mean EMGs at two phases; during sound production and just before sound production, and we measured distances of markers attached their face. Consequently, there were no difference in EMGs and distances of markers between the two phases. It suggest an appropriate formation of pre-attack embouchure was important to play the French horn successfully. We assume that an “off-pitch” tone attack on a real stage may be caused by an inappropriate embouchure setting.
EMGs in all muscles while playing the French horn increased linearly with an increase in pitch; they also increased with tone intensity without interacting with the pitch effect. Orofacial skin movement remained constant across all pitches and intensities except for lateral retraction of the lips during high-pitch tone production. Expert opinions on the embouchure muscle contraction vary from keeping relaxed to moderately tensed when engaged in all level of tone, or gradually tensed in relation to the level of pitch and intensity. Our findings clearly support the latter opinion. All facial muscles examined were activated continuously from the pre-attack phase to the end of tone production, and their activation levels were pitch- and intensity-dependent.
If you want to see more information, please check our article.
Hirano T., Kudo K., Ohtsuki T., and Kinoshita H. (2013). Orofacial muscular activity and related skin movement during the preparatory and sustained phases of tone production on the French horn. Motor Control, 17(3), 256-272.
Figure. EMG electrodes were attached on the right side of the face, and kinematic markers were attached on the left side of the face.
ホルン演奏時の表情筋と皮膚表面の動きに関する研究
"Study on facial muscle activity and facial-skin movement while playing the French horn"
By Takeshi Hirano
ホルンを演奏するとき、奏者はアンブシュアをつくるために多くの表情筋を活動させています。多くのホルン奏者は、アンブシュアをとても大事な要素だと思っており、有名なホルン奏者が書いた書籍にもアンブシュアの項目がありその要素性が記されています。すべての金管奏者は日々の演奏活動でアンブシュアを調整し、場合によってはアンブシュアを鍛えていく必要がありますが、これまでアンブシュアに関する科学的研究はほとんどありませんでした。そこで我々は10名のホルン奏者にご協力いただき、演奏中のアンブシュア形成に必要と考えられる唇周りの5つの表情筋の活動と唇周りの皮膚表面の動きを計測しました。
明らかにしたい項目は、次の2つです。
- 表情筋の活動は演奏する音高や音量によって変わるのか？
- 唇周りの形状は演奏する音高や音量によって変わるのか？
我々は図のように奏者の右顔に小型の表面筋電図、左顔に小型のマーカーを貼り付けることで、表情筋の活動と皮膚表面の動きを計測しました。奏者には自身の楽器とマウスピースを使用してもらい、さまざまな音高・音量を演奏してもらいました。そして、音を出している時と音を出す直前の表情筋の活動とマーカー間の距離をそれぞれ計算しました。その結果、表情筋の活動とマーカー間の距離は、ともに音を出している時と音を出す直前の値に違いはありませんでした。これは音を出す直前のアンブシュアの適切な調節が、音を正確に演奏するために必要な要素になっていることが考えられます。舞台上で演奏したときにみられる音をはずしてしまう現象は、もしかしたらこのアンブシュアの調節が適切に行われていないために起こると考えられます。
Scrisoare din Transilvania
Dragi prieteni,
Numele meu este Constantin-Lucian Tompa și sunt cornist în orchestra Operei Naționale Române din Cluj-Napoca. Am fost prim cornist pentru aproape 18 ani, până în stagiunea 2017-2018, când am ales să renunț la poziție și să trec la cornul 2, 3, etc. De asemenea, sunt profesor la Colegiul de muzică Sigismund Toduță din același oraș. M-am născut într-o familie de artiști: mama mea a fost designer vestimentar, iar tatăl meu a fost violonist în orchestra Operei Maghiare Cluj, instituție în care acum profesează ca și cornist fratele meu mai tânăr cu care am împărtășit de mici dragostea față de acest instrument, Sergiu-Florin Tompa. Accesând acest link https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gx6ESO91HLE, îl puteți asculta cântând ca și solist alături de Filarmonica de Stat Transilvania în anul 2012, pe perioada studiilor de master. Amândoi ne-am format ca muzicieni în orașul nostru avându-i ca și profesori de specialitate pe Vasile Oprea (pe perioada gimnaziului și în liceu) și pe Alexandru Marc (pe perioada studiilor universitare și a masterului).
Nu doresc să scriu mai multe despre mine, ci prefer să supun atenției câteva lucruri din viața cornistică de aici din Cluj-Napoca, oraș din România care are o populație de aprox. 450,000 locuitori și este situat în binecunoscuta regiune numită Transilvania. Aici, instituțiile culturale principale sunt cele două opere (finanțate de către guvern) și anume Opera Națională Română (care anul acesta sărbătorește 100 de ani de la înființare) și Opera Maghiară de Stat; aceasta este o situație unică, deoarece orașul nostru a făcut parte din Imperiul Austro-Ungar până în anul 1918. O altă instituție culturală importantă este Filarmonica de Stat Transilvania, formată din Cor și Orchestră. Principalele instituții care fac posibilă continuitatea învățământului artistic muzical în Cluj-Napoca sunt Colegiul de muzică Sigismund Toduță și Academia Națională de Muzică Gheorghe Dima.
Cântatul la corn are o veche și puternică tradiție în Cluj-Napoca, dar în opinia mea, cel mai important aspect este legătura care se naște între cei care cântă la corn. Forța care unește corniștii din întreaga lume este foarte vie și aici, creând o frumoasă comunitate de corniști care gravitează în jurul dragului nostru profesor Alexandru Marc, (în vârstă de 64 de ani) care este prim cornist în orchestra Filarmonicii de Stat Transilvania și profesor de corn la Academia de Muzică Gheorghe Dima. Un om foarte pasionat, instrumentist virtuoz, care ca profesor s-a zbătut toată viața pentru ca studenții săi să învețe și să lucreze în cele mai prielnice condiții, să aibă instrumente de calitate, o persoană dedicată profesiei, care a transmis studenților pe lângă cunoștințe valoroase, dragostea pentru corn. Nu exagerez atunci când spun că toți corniștii profesioniști care acum lucrează în orchestrele instuțiilor de cultură din Cluj-Napoca au fost studenții săi la un moment dat.
Letter from Transylvania
Dear friends,
My name is Constantin-Lucian Tompa, and I am a horn player (former principal for almost 18 years until the 2017-2018 season when I stepped over to second horn) at the Romanian National Opera in Cluj-Napoca, Romania, and I am horn professor at the Sigismund Toduta College of Music. I was born into an artistic family: my mother was a fashion designer, and my father was a violin player in the city orchestra. I have a younger brother, Sergiu-Florin Tompa, who is also a horn player; he works at the Hungarian State Opera in Cluj-Napoca. Here is a link of him playing as a soloist with the Transylvania State Philharmonic Orchestra in 2012 during his masters studies at Gheorghe Dima National Academy of Music: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gx6ESO91HLE. Sergiu and I both studied music in Cluj-Napoca with Professor Vasile Oprea from fifth grade through high school, and then with Professor Alexandru Marc for our undergraduate and masters degrees.
Rather than writing about myself, however, I want to describe some aspects of the “horn life” here in Cluj-Napoca, a major city in Romania with 450,000 inhabitants situated in the well-known Transylvania region of the country. In the city, the primary cultural entities are the two operas (financed by government), the Romanian National Opera and the Hungarian State Opera; this is a unique situation because our town was part of the Austro-Hungarian Empire until 1918. In Cluj-Napoca, there are also the Transylvania State Philharmonic Orchestra and Chorus; The National Academy of Music “Gheorghe Dima” and “Sigismund Toduta” College of Music. The National Opera and The National Academy are celebrating their centennial this year.
Horn playing in Cluj-Napoca is an old tradition—and a strong one—but most important, in my opinion, is the bond that revolves around our instrument. The force that connects horn players all over the world is very much alive here, creating a nice horn community currently centered around professor Dr. Alexandru Marc (age 64), principal horn player at the Transylvania State Philharmonic Orchestra and professor of horn at the Dima National Academy of Music. He is a passionate person who has fought all his life for his students so that they would have the best possible learning conditions and quality instruments, a person dedicated to horn playing and teaching. It is no exaggeration to say that all of the professional horn players currently working in the Cluj-Napoca orchestras, in the philharmonic and both operas, have been his students at some point.
Teaching the horn in 2019 “The Art of Playing with Others”
by David Byrd-Marrow
Greetings fellow horn enthusiasts! I’d like to thank the IHS for the opportunity to contribute my two cents.
When I was in high school in Atlanta, my first teacher, Richard Deane, used to end all of our lessons with duets. It was my favorite part of the lesson, playing with an all-star hornist and trying to mimic everything he did. I even had one of his homemade bell rests (and this was 1997!). In turn, I would play duets with my friends at school and in youth orchestra. I’ve since always loved playing duets, and I find the habit invaluable. I often travel with some sort of a duet book. It’s a great way to get to know your peers and have a good time, not to mention a great way to stay in shape. It also embodies the essence of most of what we do as musicians: listening, reacting and adjusting. You inevitably get inside the headspace of your partner, and it becomes a transcendent connection. I almost always feel closer to people after having had a duet hang.
After 15 years of freelancing in NYC, I’ve spent a lot of time considering what it is that gets you hired back to the gig. Once you get past the nonstarters like being a semi-agreeable person who can generally operate a French horn, there are other details and characteristics that come into play. In one form or another, I’ve recently found myself answering the following question a lot in masterclasses and mentoring settings:
“To what do you attribute your freelancing success?”
Interview of the Month - Douglas Hill - performer, pedagogue, composer
Since starting this series a few years ago, it’s always been a desire to interview my former teacher at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, Douglas Hill. As a performer, pedagogue, author, and composer, he has left his mark on the music world. On a personal level, he helped to shape me as an artist and human being in ways I am still discovering today. The IHS is in the process of acquiring the majority of his compositions and books for our Online Sales, so the time is ripe to share his warm-hearted wisdom with you. -KMT
Kristina Mascher-Turner: A word that often comes up in conversation with you is “gratitude” - you’ve even composed a piece with the same name. Can you tell us about this work and its conception? What are some of the things you are grateful for?
Doug Hill: Have you ever noticed how difficult it is for authors to acknowledge all those who helped them along the way while simply writing a single book? Well then multiply that many times over. I’ve had a good life thanks to Karen, my wonderful wife and musical companion of 52 years, a terrific and loving daughter Emily, some absolutely remarkable teachers and mentors, a diversified and very satisfying career, generous friends and colleagues, many magnificent students, and above average good health. Lots to be grateful for. Without gratitude, griping and grief are allowed way too much room to dominate. The composition you mentioned, titled “Gratitude”, began as the third movement of an octet for horns (“Recollections”), commissioned by Michael Ozment in memory of his father. While writing for him I was revisiting the fact that most of my compositions are autobiographical (that can’t be helped) and are largely rooted in either empathy, compassion, respect, or celebration. The melodies in this piece felt so good to write and have continued to stay with me. I’ve had opportunities to conduct the octet many times, often with my wonderful students, thus revisiting my own feelings of gratitude. Recently I decided to create an unaccompanied version which then evolved into two short preludes entitled “Grace/Gravitas/Gratitude”.
KMT: Let’s go back to where it all started, in Lincoln, Nebraska. Who first set you upon your musical path? What were your earliest influences and experiences?
DH: My parents were wonderfully supportive. Both had musical abilities and encouraged piano for each of us four boys, and band instruments along the way. My older brothers played trombone and cornet, so I tried to be like them and learn to buzz my lips. That made the horn easier for me at age 10 than it should have been. By junior high I was playing tunes. However, my true musical foundation came between the ages of 12 and 14 from Kenneth Freese. He was a man doing exactly what he was meant to do, teaching music to a bunch of junior high school kids. He was there to bang out some chords behind my rendition of “The Beer Barrel Polka”. He showed me how to “slap the bass” and how to read basic chord symbols at the piano. He helped me to notate the tunes that were running through my head, and then he let me show off those “compositions” to audiences full of band parents. By high school I was in a combo playing bass gigs at proms with “Dickie Von and the Softones”, and I had started lessons with Jack Snider, an amazing, tough-love horn teacher at the university. I soon became very active in local jazz combos, playing bass with amazing improvisors like Duane Schulz and his family band, and Dennis Schneider, the trumpet professor at the university, earning some decent money in local nightclubs. All this early stuff laid the groundwork for my diversified career and my respect and love for teaching and teachers, as well as playing horn well, the power of all music, jazz, and great tunes!
