Audition Advice
Audition advice: Denise Tryon (Philadelphia Orchestra) and Karl Pituch (Detroit Symphony Orchestra)
Interview by Kristina Mascher
Q: In Europe, horn students have traditionally chosen to focus on "high" or "low" horn and have prepared to take auditions exclusively for corresponding orchestra vacancies. Do you think this is a valid approach in today's job market? Or should young players try to do it all? What are the advantages/disadvantages in specializing?
Denise: I think it's wise to be as well rounded a player as possible, and therefore you are able to take both high and low auditions. This opens up so many more opportunities and you never know what might happen!
Karl: Also, most auditions now have both high and low register excerpts that we all have to learn – Shostakovich 5 is on almost every list, Till has the low register for a high horn and Beethoven 7 is pretty high for both. So you really need to learn the entire range of the horn. I started as a 4th horn and slowly moved my way through the section.
Q: When given the option of sending an audition recording for the preliminary round or making the journey to play live, is there an advantage to showing up personally?
Denise: I think playing live is the best option, if you are able to do it. In my experience, on both sides of the recording device and screen, it is much more challenging to advance with a recording.
Karl: Playing live is the best option. You can’t control where or how your recording will be heard. In the live audition, everyone will be listened to in an equal setting.
Q: How did you develop the concept of your workshop, Audition Mode?
Denise: When Karl and I would talk about our students and auditions, we realized there was no dedicated seminar/workshop to discuss the audition process and we wanted to change that. We made sure to have a dedicated high and low list. We also wanted to have everyone work on both lists and take both mock auditions at the end of the seminar (to refer back to your first question!). We wanted to incorporate some section playing as well, since most times you will need to play in the section in order. We also discuss preparation, performance anxiety and what to expect the day of the audition!
Break the Chain
by Bruce Richards
“Think Different” Apple computer’s famous slogan was, and is a symbol for doing things differently, and that is what I want audition takers to do. Regardless of the situation e.g. exam, recital, concert, audition, or competition you need to take a fresh look at your preparation to break the chain of actions, thoughts, or events that lead to performance anxiety.
Over the last few years I have been teaching at a new summer course in Spa, Belgium. The “Stage International de Musique en Province de Liège.” Aside from the normal teaching I have given master classes on breathing, but over time it seemed that more and more students asked my opinion, or asked for help with performance anxiety. As professor of horn at the Liège Royal Conservatory I have had many students ask for coaching, or help in this matter. The psychology of performance seems to be something that is often neglected.
So, this year I will be presenting a master class on performance anxiety. It is a subject that has fascinated me for a very long time. I have developed many different techniques which I have used with horn players, violinists, trombonists, and of course myself. The title of the master class is:
“Break the Chain”
If you can imagine a prisoner with a ball and chain attached to his leg. The ball keeps him from escaping. The ball is performance anxiety, and the links in the chain are forged by us one link at a time until we are attached to the ball and can’t escape.
One of the techniques that I will teach in the master class is called:
“How to format the hard drive”
With a computer we often have to create partitions in the hard drive. Essentially separating sections from each other. This protects you from trouble because you are only using one partition at a time. Taking an audition is the same as using your computer. You have programmed each excerpt and stored it in it’s own partition in your brain.
If you imagine the brain as a series of rooms (partitions) and each room has a name. e.g. Mahler 5, Tchaikovsky 5, Strauss Concerto no. 1, etc... Each room has a door. If the first piece I have to play is Mozart 4, I go to that door, open it and go in. I focus only on Mozart 4, and perform it. If the next piece is
Till Eulenspiegel I leave the Mozart room closing the door. Everything that happened during Mozart stays in that room. (errors, problems, accidents, etc...) I then go to the Till room and go in. I focus on Till, and perform it. Etc, etc... Visualisation is very important. The act of leaving the room means closing the door and moving on.
Only after the audition is over do I go back in to each room to analyse each performance. I write down all the details and decide if I need to simply correct some mistakes or completely “reformat” the partition relating to a particular excerpt. This technique can be applied to all types of performances. I found it an easy way to get back my focus, even in the middle of a concert. Break the chain of thought. Use varying approaches to find a mental solution.
“Think Different”
http://www.cs-academy.be/ Stage Internationale de Musique en Province de Liège
http://www.crlg.be/ Conservatoire Royal de Liège
http://brucerichardshorn.com/ Bruce Richards (personal web site)
Briser la chaîne
par Bruce Richards
in English"Think Different", célèbre slogan de Apple, a été et reste un symbole pour concevoir les choses différemment, et c'est ce que je voudrais que les artistes fassent. Peu importe la situation, examen, récital, concert, audition, ou concours, vous devez porter un nouveau regard sur votre préparation pour briser la chaîne des actions, des pensées ou des événements qui conduisent au trac.
Depuis quelques années, j'enseigne lors d'un nouveau stage d'été à Spa (Belgique): le “Stage International de Musique en Province de Liège."
En marge de l'enseignement normal, j'ai donné des masterclasses sur la respiration, mais au fil du temps, il apparaissait que les étudiants sollicitaient de plus en plus mon avis et mes conseils en rapport avec le trac. En tant que professeur de cor au Conservatoire Royal de Liège, j’ai rencontré de nombreux étudiants qui souhaitaient un coaching ou une aide en cette matière. La psychologie de la "prestation" semble eneffet être un aspect souvent négligé.
IHS LA 2015
IHS LA 2015, hosted by Andrew Bain and Annie Bosler, is almost a month away! If you have not yet registered, make sure to visit the website: www.ihsla2015.com to register soon. There are over 180 events taking place within the 7 day span: August 2 - 8, 2015.
IHS LA 2015 CONTRIBUTING ARTIST SPOTLIGHTS
Healthy Horn Playing: Injury Prevention through Pedagogy Informed by Science
August 3, 2015 - 1:30pm 2:20pm
An alarming number of brass players, professional and non-professional, have developed career-limiting focal dystonia. Dr. Peter Iltis, Professor of Horn and Kinesiology at Gordon College, and Eli Epstein, veteran second horn of The Cleveland Orchestra, will present MRI films that clearly illustrate horn techniques that may lead to sustainable careers and the prevention of focal dystonia in brass players.
If you have yet to check out this link from Sarah Willis' website, this also refers to the work of Peter and Eli.
Theatrical Production: I Found My Horn
First Show: TBA
Second Show: Saturday, August 8, 2015: 1:30pm 3:20pm
Writers: Jasper Rees and Jonathan Guy Lewis
Director: Harry Burton
Actor: Jonathan Guy Lewis
Jonathan Guy Lewis is directed by Harry Burton in an updated production of this wryly funny and infinitely touching story about making music and confronting one’s private demons. Adapted from Jasper Rees’ popular book, A Devil to Play, the play was premiered in 2008 at the Aldeburgh Festival in Benjamin Britten’s home town. It was performed to great acclaim at the 2014 International Horn Society workshop in London.
A man wakes up at forty to a broken marriage, a beckoning bedsit, and the realisation that he has done nothing to make himself memorable. Then he clambers into the attic... After a lay-off of 25 years, he seeks redemption via the sixteen feet of treacherous brass tubing he never mastered in his youth. Resuming his old French horn, he sets himself an impossible task: to perform a Mozart concerto in front of a paying audience of horn fanatics. Q&A will follow.
International Horn Competition Award
Nouveau Internationaux de Cor Compétition Prix
La société internationale de cor à le plaisir d'annoncer qu'elle va créer un prix qui sera destiné aux premiers prix de cor dans les compétitions reconnues par la Fédération Mondiales des Concours Internationaux de Musique. La société va offrir:
- la somme de 1000$ US
- une opportunité de jouer lors d'un IHS congrès mondial
- carte de membre IHS durant trios ans
La première compétition concernée par ce prix sera en Corée du sud en été 2015 lors du festival et concours de Jeju. http://www.jiwef.org/
La IHS est heureuse de soutenir grâce à ce nouveau prix les jeunes cornistes talentueux!
Nuevo Premio de Competicion Internacional de Trompa
La Sociedad Internacional de Trompistas esta de enhorabuena por anunciar un nuevo premio.
La- IHS International Competion Award-, esta dirigida a trompistas que compiten en concursos en todo el mundo. El premio especial es para los primeros premios en la categoria de trompa de qualquier concurso internacional de la Federacion Mundial de Concursos Mundiales, el premio especial consiste en:
- $1000 USD
- oportunidad para actuar en un futuro symposium
- abono de 3 temporadas como miembro de la ihs
La primera oportunidad donde este nuevo premio podria ser entregado es el concurso de Jeju en Corea del Sur en agosto de 2015. http://www.jiwef.org/
Estaremos encantados de poder ofrecer este nuevo premio a talentosos y jovenes trompistas de todo el mundo!
Neuer Preis – Internationaler-Hornwettbewerb
Die Internationale Horngesellschaft freut sich über einen neuen Preis! Die IHS-Internationale-Musikwettbewerb-Auszeichnung bietet Unterstützung an allen Hornisten, die sich für Wettbewerben rund um die Welt bewerben. Dieser Preis wird an den/die 1. Preisträger/in jegliches Wettbewerbs assoziiert mit dem “World Federation of International Music Competitions” (Fach Horn)
Der Preis trägt:
- 1000 USD
- Die Konzertgelegenheit bei dem kommenden IHS-Symposium, aufzutreten
- Eine 3-jährige Mitgliedschaft in der Internationalen-Horngesellschaft
Der erste Wettbewerb bei dem dieser Preis verliehen werden darf ist das “International Jeju Wind Ensemble Festival,” im Jeju, Südkorea, August 2015.
Wir sind begeistert, diese Unterstzützung jungen, begabten Hornisten aus aller Welt, anzubieten!
신 국제 호른 경연대회 상
국제 호른 협회는 새로운 상을 소개하게 되어 매우 기쁩니다. 국제 호른 협회의 International Music Competition Award는 전세계의 음악경연대회에 참가하는 호른연주자들을 지원하고자 합니다.
이 특별한 상은 World Federation of International Music Competitions에서 주최하는 모든 경연대회의 호른 부문 우승자에게 주어지게 됩니다. 수상내용은 다음과 같습니다.
- 미 달러 1000불
- 다가오는 IHS 심포지엄에서 공연할 수 있는 기회
- IHS 멤버쉽 3년
이 특별상을 받을 수 있는 첫 경연대회는 2015년 8월 제주도에서 주최되는 국제 제주 윈드앙상블 페스티벌의 제주 국제 금관악기 경연대회 입니다.
저희는 전세계의 젊고 재능있는 호르니스트들을 지원할 수 있게 되어 기쁩니다
新しい国際ホルンコンクール賞
国際ホルン協会は、新しい賞についてご案内することに、わくわくしています！IHS国際音楽コンクール賞は、ホルン奏者が世界中の音楽コンクールに参加するためのサポートをする意図があります。この特別賞は、世界各地で開催される国際音楽コンクールのホルン部門の優勝者に、授与されます。
賞の内容は、
- 1000 USドル
- 次のIHSシンポジウムにおける演奏の機会
- IHSの３年間のメンバー資格
このIMCA賞が授与される最初のコンクールは、２０１５年８月に、韓国のチェジュ島で行われる、国際チェジュ管楽アンサンブルフェスティバルです。
http://www.jiwef.org/
私たちは、世界中の若くて才能あるホルン奏者を支援することに、興奮しています。
Jeju tidbit
The International Horn Society is excited to announce a new award! The IHS International Music Competition Award is aimed at supporting hornists competing in music competitions around the world. This special prize is for the first prize winner of the Horn Division of any of the World Federation of International Music Competitions. The award is:
- $1000 US
- An opportunity to perform at the upcoming IHS Symposium
- A three year membership to the IHS
The first competition where this IMCA prize may be awarded is the International Jeju Wind Ensemble Festival in Jeju, Korea, in August, 2015.
We are excited to be offering this support to young, talented hornists from around the world!
2014 Composition Contest Results
by Randall Faust, Composition Contest Coordinator
In 2014 hat die Internationale Horngesellschaft, sein 35. Jubiläumsjahr des Kompositionswettbewerb gefeiert. Im Anlaß daran gab es dieses Jahr zwei Kategorien.
1. Kategorie “Featured” Komposition: Die Werke in dieser Kategorie waren Stücke für Solo-Horn mit Tasteninstrument von einem mittelmäßigen Schwierigkeitsgrad.
2. Kategorie Virtuose-Komposition: Diese Werke hatten keine Schwierigkeitsgrenze und bestanden aus einer der folgenden Kategorien:
- Werke für Solo-Horn (unbegleitet)
- Werke für Hornensemble (zwei oder mehr Spieler, nur Hörner)
- Horn mit Kammermusikensemble von vier oder mehr Instrumentalisten (nur eine Hornstimme)
- Solohorn mit Begleitung vom großen Ensemble
(Die Instrumentierung für diese Kategorien wird in zukünftigen Wettbewerbungen abgewechselt werden.)
Der 2014 Kompositionswettbewerb hat 59 Einträge aus 13 Ländern bekommen: 22 Teilnehmer in der “Featured”-Kategorie und 37 in der Virtuose-Kategorie.
Die preisgekrönte Komposition in der ersten Kategorie war “Mountain Sketches for Horn and Piano” von Paul Johnston, Charleston, Illinois, USA. Die Jury hat sich entschloßen, auch dazu eine spezielle Auszeichnung zu verliehen: “Miniatures for Horn and Piano” von Sy Brandon aus Cottonwood, Arizona, USA.
Der 1. Preis in der Virtuose-Kategorie wurde an “Hard to Argue (A Concertino for Five Horns) von Catherine Likhuta aus Brisbane, Australien, verliehen. Die Jury hat ebenfalls zwei spezielle Auszeichnungen in dieser Kategorie gegeben: “15 Low Horn Etudes for Solo Horn” von Ricardo Matosinhos aus Ermesinde, Portugal, und “Dancing on the Hill” für Hornensemble von Patrick Hughes aus Austin, Texas, USA.
Die Jury bestand aus drei hochkarätigen Komponisten und Hornisten: David Stanhope (Australien,) Preisträger des 1979-I.H.S-Kompositionswettbewerb; Andrew Boysen (Universität von New Hampshire, USA,) Preisträger des 1999-I.H.S.-Kompositionswettbewerb; und Jeffrey Snedeker (Central Washington University, USA,) ehemaliger Präsident der Internationalen Horngesellschaft.
Sie können mehr Infos über die preistragende Werke in der Mai-Ausgabe des “Horn Call” aufsuchen. Detaillierte Auskunft über die spezielle Auszeichnungen beiden Kategorien sind in der folgenden Ausgabe des “Horn-Call” zu finden. Die Möglichkeit, diese Werke auf Konzerten des Internationalen Horn-Symposium in Los Angeles in August aufzuführen, sind in der Planung.
