If I Could See Me Now
by Joy Cox
My ten-year-old self would be so disappointed by my thirty-year-old self. I was going to be the greatest horn player of my time. I wept on my bedroom floor when I read the fingering chart incorrectly and tried to play A-flat with fingers one and two. It didn’t sound right. There was something wrong with me! I would never be the greatest because I can’t play A-flat! Obviously I got that figured out. Barry Tuckwell was my hero; I even named my goldfish “Barry.” When at last it was time for college, I figured I had better go to music conservatory because who really has time for math and English? Must practice. I did everything I could to pursue a career in performing and things went well. I won a small, but professional, audition during college and had enough free-lance work to support myself.
Fast forward about ten years. I have around 150 students ranging from preschool to high school age. My classes are general music, band, choir, and handbells. I’ll admit, it’s kind of crazy but I had been pulled into teaching little by little. It started with giving piano lessons and doing after school tutoring on the side and that was it, I was sold! When presented with the opportunity to teach a subject I was passionate about, I could hardly turn it down. I found myself sharing the most basic elements of music in a more interactive way than I had before. For the most part, it seemed that my students were enjoying music and growing from the relationships we were building. We were all being challenged.
Lessons from Building a Successful Career as a Teacher and Hornist
by Brad Tatum
As hornists, we live in a society full of musicians who are aspiring to win that position with a full-time orchestra or other performing arts organization. It is easy for musicians who are fresh out of college to feel a sense of failure if they have not yet achieved this. Sadly, the old and inappropriate adage that those who can’t, teach, has always seemed truer for musicians than any other field. However, I am fortunate that at this stage in my life I have achieved a degree of success as a teacher and performer and find that they are quite complementary to each other. In this article, I hope to share some lessons I have learned along the way of how to be successful doing both, and to demonstrate how teaching can make you a better performer and vice-versa.
In addition to being blessed with a wife and two kids, I currently teach band and orchestra full time at Elizabeth Seton High School, play principal natural horn for the Washington Bach Consort, instruct a large studio of horn players, give recitals and masterclasses at universities, and freelance in the Washington, DC area. Most recently, I had the wonderful experience of hosting the first ever D.C. Horn Choir Camp at my high school. It was a terrific way to use my skills as a hornist and band director to benefit others.
I started my teaching career while completing my DMA at Maryland, and I have been teaching for nine years. My struggles to be a good music teacher and hornist have always seemed to coincide; so far, success in one has brought success in the other. It is safe to say it all began when I established a routine of practicing first thing in the morning before school. Not only has this created a great habit, but also it has made me a better music teacher. Some days this was my only chance to practice, and on the days I got distracted by other tasks, I always wished I had practiced first. It forced me to use my time wisely and to learn to practice with an emphasis on quality over quantity. It also helps me wake up and feel more focused before my school day begins.
The Best of Both Worlds
by Steve Park
It is probably assumed that most people who play horn at a professional level would choose to do it for a living. But that may not always be the best path to take. I have chosen a different path than most and have really been happy with the results.
I have always been good at playing horn. While I was still in junior high school, the high school band director recruited me to play in his band. They were preparing to perform at the Mid-west Clinic in Chicago, which means that they were one of the top bands in the country. They already had 5 horns, so they really didn’t need me. But the band director recognized that I played really well and offered me the opportunity.
I was first chair in All-state band. There were 8 horns in the section. As a senior in high school, I played 3rd horn in the orchestra and brass choir at the University of Utah. Both groups met in the afternoon on alternate days. I was able to arrange my schedule so that I could leave the high school early each day to make the rehearsals.
As a freshman at the University of Utah I had a full tuition music scholarship and played first horn in all the groups. I also got my first taste of studio recording. We recorded the theme music for the KSL Channel 5 News. The horn part was dominant in the music, and for the next couple of years I got to hear myself every time my parents watched the evening news. Today I do studio recording sessions on a regular basis and play in most of the contract orchestra gigs in the Salt Lake City area. At a recording session a couple of years ago, one of the Utah Symphony horn players asked me why I didn’t play professionally.
Practicing What I Preach
by Mark Syslo
My name is Mark Syslo, and like most of you, I am enthusiastic about playing the horn! I am also an instrumental music teacher. I want to thank Dr. Mike Harcrow for the opportunity to tell my story about being an educator and horn player. I first knew I wanted to “share music with others” when I was in 11th grade. I attended Mansfield University of Pennsylvania to study music education and studied horn with Mr. David Borsheim. After Mansfield, I was hired to teach 4th to 12th grade instrumental music in the Greenwood School District in Millerstown, PA. While at Greenwood, I worked on my graduate degree in music education at Penn State University. After nine years at Greenwood, I was hired to teach instrumental music in the Parkland School District in Allentown. I am the band director at two elementary schools in the district in addition to being an instructor in the fall with the high school marching band. I have just finished my 26th year of teaching.
Over the years, I have also enjoyed playing my horn as much as my schedule allows. The idea that I “practice what I preach” in my classroom has never gone away. (What kind of music teacher who has not touched his/her instrument in years asks a student to practice?!?) Over the years, I have played civic orchestras, community bands, musicals, solo work, in church, etc. Having a full-time job allows me to accept playing that is rewarding, and not necessarily for pay.
Being a music teacher who continues to play and perform can be very demanding. Anyone who thinks being a teacher is easy truly has no idea what it is to be a teacher. My job requires working with colleagues, administrators, and students while wearing a smile constantly! Yes, constantly! I write music, schedule rehearsals that are not scheduled for me, reschedule lessons that are missed for a myriad of reasons, stay in constant contact with parents, AND save enough energy for Friday night football games for the first three months of the school year!
Symposium Video
Video Highlights and a slideshow from IHS 49
Pedagogy - Günter Högner
English versionEin 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.
Pedagogy - Günter Högner
On the Vienna Horn
by Günter Högner
As a lifelong musician and as first horn of the Vienna Philharmonic (in Vienna there’s no “solo horn”) – as well as professor at the Music University in Graz, sound was and still remains the most important component of music making.
As most people know, the outstanding importance of the Vienna F Horn lies less in its technical possibilities than in the tone quality – the smooth slurs in particular are appreciated and admired.
Where does this “Vienna Horn Sound” quality come from?
The softness of the sound, on the one hand, has to do with the length of the instrument; more overtones are able to vibrate, and through this the sound is richer. The diameter is another component in this formula. Additional factors include the way to blow the air through the horn as well as the articulation, which mustn’t be too hard. And of course it’s also about the slurs that can be so especially lovely on the Vienna horn.
Most people believe that the possibility to play such smooth legato comes from the valves, but this is not true. The quality of the slurs lies in the length of the pipe between the mouthpiece and the valves. The length of the air column from the mouthpiece to the valves is around 1.60-1.80 meters (63-71 inches); in contrast, the Bb horn (on the double horn) is around 20-40 centimeters (8-16 inches). Such a short column of air obviously cannot become as compressed as nearly 2 meters’ worth – the longer tubing is more flexible. It’s because of this that the slurs on the Vienna horn sound so velvety. –But you also have to know how to do it, how to blow the sound as well as how to “lead” the airstream over the slurs. (All this you must “practice, practice, practice…”)
However, the form of the mouthpiece (with the emphasis on the inner dimensions) is a little different then for a double horn; it’s less bulgy, less barrel shaped, more like a funnel. This depends on the shape of the “soul” of the mouthpiece, the middle part (the “soul” is the cylindrical part of the mouthpiece), and on a Vienna mouthpiece this is very long and concludes at its end once again in a funnel shape.
There are also certain variables – on the instrument as well as the mouthpiece – that are responsible for the different sound and method of playing. In addition to this comes the transmission of tradition from teacher to student; see Hans Swarowsky, 1979, who in his book “Preservation of Form” (page 258 in the German edition), emphasizes how valuable it was to him that so much direct tradition was passed down to him (for example, the cultivation of song, going back to Johannes Brahms).
Most conductors highly treasure the horn sound of the Vienna Philharmonic. Here’s a little anecdote from my everyday professional life with one of the (for me) most important conductors, Nicolaus Harnoncourt: A horn player cracked a note unmistakably in a rehearsal. (It was probably me.) Immediately, the cellist sitting in front of him turned around confrontationally. Right away, Harnoncourt – who seemingly wanted to defend the horn player – stopped the cellist with these words: “Don’t turn around! Your colleague is playing on the F horn – not on a double horn, that you…um…that you…um, er, that you can buy anywhere.”
Enough with the anecdotes. Frequent “clamming” is of course the trade-off for the otherwise celebrated sound quality. Because of this, neither can the F horn compete soloistically nor technically with the double horn.
So why do I give so much worth to the Vienna horn?
Well, in the Romantic era, almost everything is written for the valve horn in F, which was, back then, the most commonly available orchestral instrument. I play (and teach) it because of the already addressed tone quality and beauty of sound.
I’d like to emphasize the importance of transposition skills – thus the ability to read the parts in their original keys!
In my view, it is immensely important to play the orchestra and solo parts from the scores in their original keys. You can then more easily recognize the original “stopped” and “half-stopped” tones – and musically interpret them accordingly.
In conclusion, I would like to give students one more piece of advice for the road: Don’t go to too many courses with different teachers! Every one of them will have a different point of view. You will be more confused than enlightened.
A good teacher needs (roughly) at least 1 to 2 months to be able to judge all the strengths and weaknesses of a student. A horn course, in contrast, is usually over in 10 to 14 days. There are students who “collect” courses the way other people collect stamps. And then they wonder why a longer-term success evades them.
About me: I was born on July 16, 1943, in Vienna. At age 13, I received my first instruction on the horn at the Conservatory of the City of Vienna with Prof. Franz Koch (Wiener Symphoniker). A few years later, I began my serious studies at the Music Academy with Prof. Leopold Kainz (Vienna Philharmonic). There followed after this a few “learning years” with smaller orchestras in Austria. In 1965, I came to the Vienna Folk Opera as first horn, and a short time later, to the Vienna State Opera in the same capacity. In 1971 I also became first horn in the Vienna Philharmonic.
In addition to my orchestral activities, I played in several chamber music ensembles, including the Ensemble Wien-Berlin. I took over as professor of horn at the Music University in Graz in 1982 and taught there until 2011.
Translation: KMT
Interview of the Month – Tawnee Lynn Lillo
Kristina Mascher-Turner: Tawnee, you are a woman of many talents - it’s hard to know where to start! How about at the beginning? How did you come to play the horn in the first place, and how did you first start your career as a horn player?
Tawnee Lynn Lillo: If I could describe my unique prowess to the reader, it’s that I’m excited about everything. To some people, this must sound exhausting :) After dabbling in running, tennis, sports, piano, flute and some violin, the horn pretty much called my name in band one day in 8th grade. My family of 7 lived on 80 acres of land so that my father could have an airstrip to fly his planes to/from work. We “temporarily” (1988-2006) used a diesel-powered generator for electricity. Watching Independence Day with my family at home during generator hours was when I was first sold on the horn!! The student model F horn we all start out on came home with me, and I taught myself how to change the sound from a dying elephant to something more enjoyable that summer (I had a cockatoo at the time who would sit on the bell and bob his head up and down to my beats). As for my career, I feel I am smack dab in the middle of it as we speak and am doing everything I can to stay focused, alert, aware, happy, and smiling, helping and inspiring as many as I can along the way. After studying at the University of Arizona with Keith Johnson as well as at USC with legends Vince DeRosa and Richard Todd, I started playing small jobs around campus and the surrounding areas. From there, all kinds of adventurous opportunities arose. Every SINGLE person I started my Masters degree with at USC is playing at the highest level and mostly teaching at colleges/universities!
KMT: While at music school, we are often captivated by the idea of winning that big orchestra audition and settling into a stable routine (and salary). So often, destiny takes us in other directions. How important is it for us to keep our feelers out for alternate paths?
TLL: Being in that principal horn spot, especially (on any part) full time in a symphony is an accomplishment for the history books and really takes a badass individual. Preparing, staying focused, being a team player who works well in this setting, having the proper balance, etc. is something many dream of while some naturally have that talent/skill. With all kinds of talent in our industry, and with the whole entrepreneurial picture, now is definitely the time to learn, research, develop and incorporate other skills that allow our musical abilities to grow and expand. It’s pretty incredible getting the opportunity to do what I do as I’m sure most of you reading can relate to on some degree. Being surrounded by and getting to hang out with, make music, perform, laugh, and have deep/important conversations with such skilled colleagues, friends and mentors alike is an incredible gift. Having the opportunity to sub more with the San Diego Symphony has been a highlight, and preparing my student for the professional world has been a reminder of how well I was taught/guided!!
KMT: You first got into contracting through your association with an opera company - can you tell us about those early key moments?
