Meet Professor Seok-Jun Lee, Korean National University of Arts
English version
1971년 서울출생 예원, 서울예고, 서울대학교 음악대학졸업 하였고 독일 Essen Folkwang Musikhochshule 에서 Diplom과 Konzert Examen을 졸업하였다. 독일 유학당시 Düsseldorf Kammerorchester 객원수석을 역임하였고 귀국후에 KBS교향악단 수석을 역임하였다. 일본 JHS 초청연주,일본 Tokyo 앙상블 (리더, 김창국) 초청연주, 일리노이주립대 초청독주회 및 마스터클래스, 제주국제관악제 초청 soloist, Shenzhen International Horn Festival에 초청받아 독주회와 마스터클래스를 하였다. 2005, 2015, 2017년에 교향악축제 협연자로 연주하였고 귀국후 2001~현재까지 매년 예술의전당 리싸이틀홀에서 독주회를 개최했으며 2009~현재 매년 Berliner Philharmonie Kammermusiksaal 에서 독주회를 개최하였고 독일 Berlin Kammerorchester와 협연하였다. 올해 11월에는 일본에서 열리는 Asia Horn Festival에 독주자와 마스터클래스로 초청받았으며 12월에는 예술의전당 독주회가 예정되있다.
현재 한국예술종합학교교수로 재직하고 있으며 TIMF앙상블, Solus of Seoul Brass quintet, 제주국제관악콩쿨 심사위원으로 활동중이다.
기본기가 중요한데 자연스럽게 호흡하고 내뱉고... 경직되지 않게 하고 아르페지오나 스케일 연습많이시키는 편이예요~ 곡이나 애튜드 할때는 자연스럽게 노래가 흘러가도록 하게하지만 음정,리듬 이런거 정확하게 하는게 중요하다고 가르침니다.
Pedagogy—Nury Guarnaschelli
Thoughts to prepare you for an orchestral audition. (re-post from August 2018)
by Nuri Guarnaschelli
If you are young and you are thinking that you would like to have a job as a horn player in a professional orchestra, you should already be thinking about the direction in which you are taking and the frequency of your training with this objective in mind.
Unfortunately, practicing for years may be far from preparing you for this purpose. To be a good orchestral musician you must prove that you are able to withstand a trial year once you win an audition.
The orchestra does not look mainly for soloists; rather they look for instrumentalists who know how to perform with their group, work as a team, and someone who is sensitive to what is happening around them.
First of all, there are two fundamental technical aspects, rhythm and intonation. We have to consider many others too, but without these two you cannot play in an orchestra or with other musicians.
If you want to win an audition you should basically be a person who listens to a lot of many different versions of music and knows these works very well, because in an audition, a good jury will be aware of this aspect by the way you perform every solo.
Training for an audition has several aspects to consider: the technical, the artistic and the physical.
The technical aspect includes your development to the point of having a clean technique, and good intonation with the appropriate articulation in the style of each piece you are performing. The artistic aspect includes understanding of styles, articulation, sound, phrasing and character that is appropriate with each composition.
Secondly, the physical aspect is something to consider. Doing some activity that helps you feel physically and mentally fit. Remember the famous "mens sana in corpore sano"! (“healthy mind, healthy body”!) . It can be yoga (for me personally, this practice has always helped me to feel balanced in all senses, mental and bodily) or your favorite sport.
The mental state and confidence in yourself is very important when you are auditioning.
Something very significant that I want to emphasize is that all these aspects must be added to your daily practice, even if you are already a professional.
If you practice only one or two months before an audition, you will not succeed. Only a definitive change of your playing habits will define whether a jury will decide in your favor or whomever else they listen to that demonstrates better technique and musicianship.
Remember, you will have a maximum of 5 minutes in the first round in which you must demonstrate to the jury that it is worth their while to consider you in the next rounds. You must convince them with of your impeccable technique, musicianship and tone qualities.
What the jury values most in the first round is rhythm, intonation, articulation and tone.
For the next rounds, in addition to the qualities already stated, they will evaluate more closely your knowledge of style and your artistic quality.
Remember that they are looking for the ideal "colleague" who will improve the quality of their team and their orchestra, and they are not looking for an advanced student, but look for a solid professional, capable of performing the job being offered.
Another tip is that you should listen to important works of our symphonic repertoire every day, which also includes chamber music, string music, and opera. This will cultivate your musical sense and development as a well rounded musician.
If you are not excited listening to music or you don’t want to play music in your free time with friends or colleagues, I recommend you seriously consider studying something else ... the music profession is very competitive. Without a fanatical passion you will not achieve more than that of being a hobby musician.
These thoughts that I have shared are results of my own personal experience in preparation for auditions in Germany, France and Austria, and also my experience in orchestras where I was a soloist and I participated as a member of a jury including the Stuttgart Philharmonic for 4 years and Radio and TV in Vienna (RSO) for 16 years. I have experience as a teacher for over 10 years at the Brass Academy Alicante where I help my students achieve their professional goals as musicians.
All professors in this International Academy train students to prepare themselves technically and stylistically as professional musicians so that in the long or short term they are able to perform good auditions and be able to make their positive contributions toward the orchestra that they achieve to get into.
For this purpose, we not only do individual classes, but we also include chamber music and orchestral repertoire in groups. That way you not only get to know the solos and individual parts, but get to experience them in the context as they are in the orchestra.
Group classes also train in live performing, developing emotional stability under real life situations
You will only succeed with your solos in an audition if you know the context in which they were written.
I want to share with you some audio examples of our orchestral repertoire classes at the Brass Academy Alicante:
Fidelio- Beethoven, Nury Guarnaschelli and her BAA´s students
Mahler´s 3th Symphony
Lohengrin-Wagner
Bruckner´s 8th Symphony
Finally, I want to share with you some points for your daily practice.
You should ALWAYS be prepared and ready to take an audition, not just prepare for a specific moment.
Your daily practice should develop:
- Technique (Flexibility, breathing, attacks, etc.)
- Technical studies (rhythm, tuning, articulation, and phrasing)
- Concertos
- Orchestral solos, solo and playing along with a good recording.
- Concentrated listening to good orchestras every day, preferably with a score in hand.
- Listening to concerts and opera regularly.
- Play chamber music or in orchestras (young or professional) as much as possible.
- Daily yoga or sport.
SUCCESS !!!
NURY GUARNASCHELLI
Brass Academy Alicante
English translation by Gabriella Ibarra
Pedagogy—Nury Guarnaschelli
* Como prepararse para audiciones de orquesta
** Pensamientos que pueden guiarte
por Nuri Guarnaschelli
Si eres joven y estas pensando en que te gustaría tener un trabajo como cornista ( Hornplayer) en una orquesta profesional , debes pensar ya en orientar tu modo y ritmo de formación en esta dirección y con este objetivo.
Muchas veces lamentablemente el estudio que haces durante años y años está muy lejos de prepararte para este fin, para ser un buen músico de orquesta o para demostrarlo que o eres en una prueba ( Probespiel ) profesional.
En la orquesta no se buscan en primera línea solistas , se buscan instrumentistas que sepan del trabajo en grupo, en fila, que sean sensibles a lo que pasa a su alrededor. Y dos aspectos fundamentales son ritmo y afinación en primera línea, al que se suman tantos otros por supuesto , pero sin estos dos no puedes tocar en una orquesta ni con otros músicos. Si quieres ganar una audición deberás básicamente ser una persona que escuche muchísima música , muy diversas versiones y conozcas las obras profundamente, pues en una audición ,un buen jurado ,escucha este aspecto en tu modo de presentar los solos.
El prepararse para una audición tiene varios aspectos a tener en cuenta : el técnico, el artístico y el corporal. El técnico incluye tu perfeccionamiento al punto de tener un modo de tocar limpio, afinado y una articulación precisa y adecuada al estilo que estés presentando en cada obra o los solos. El aspecto artístico incluye el conocimiento de los estilos con la articulación, el sonido, el fraseo y el carácter que sean acordes al compositor y obra. Y por último el tema físico es algo que deberías tener en cuenta y considerar en hacer alguna actividad que colabore a que te sientas tonificado y mentalmente fuerte , recuerda el famoso “ mens sana in corpore sano “ ! . Puede ser yoga ( a mi ésta práctica personalmente siempre me ha ayudado mucho a estar equilibrada en todos los sentidos , mental y corporal ) o algún deporte de tu agrado. El estado mental y que tengas confianza en ti mismo es fundamental al momento de audicionar. Algo muy importante que quiero recalcar es que todos estos aspectos los debes tener en cuenta para tu estudio diario y durante todos los años de estudio y mas tarde profesión. No te servirá mucho el prepararse de un modo especial para una prueba 1 mes o dos meses antes de la misma, eso no te llevara a tener éxito, solo cambiar tu modo de tocar será lo que te llevará a que un jurado se decida por ti o por otro en el cual escuchen mejor técnica y personalidad musical.
Recuerda que en 5 minutos máximos de una primera ronda deberás convencer al jurado que vale la pena seguir escuchándote y en las próximas rondas lo mismo. Debes convencer con tu técnica impecable y tus calidades musicales y de sonido. Lo que mas valorará el jurado en la primera ronda será : ritmo , afinación , articulación y sonido. Ya en las próximas rondas , cuando estos aspectos antes mencionados ya estén claros , comenzarán a evaluar mas tus conocimientos de estilo y tu calidad artística. Piensa que ellos están buscando al “ colega “ ideal que mejore la calidad de su fila y de su orquesta y no están buscando un estudiante adelantado, buscan un profesional que conozca el trabajo para el cual te estas ofreciendo! Otro consejos es que todos los días escuches obras importantes de nuestro repertorio sinfónico , pero también mucha música de cámara , música para cuerdas y opera, ésto cultivará tu sentido musical y te desarrollará como músico.
Si no te emociona escuchar música y no estás ahora mismo dispuesto a hacer música en tus tiempos libres con amigos o colegas , te recomiendo darle un vuelco a tu vida y pensar en estudiar otra cosa… nuestra profesión es muy dura y sin pasión , aunque logres entrar a una orquesta, te Estos pensamientos que estoy escribiendo aquí son el producto de mis propia preparación para pruebas ( Probespiel) en Alemania , Francia y Austria. Y también mi experiencia en las orquestas donde fui corno solista y participé como jurado : Filarmónica de Stuttgart durante 4 años y Radio y TV de Viena ( RSO) durante 16 años. Pero también de mi experiencia como docente desde hacer 10 años en la Brass Academy Alicante en donde intento ayudar a mis alumnos.
La formación que damos todos los profesores en esta Academia internacional está básicamente orientada a formar músicos profesionales ( orquesta , música de cámara o solistas) y a preparar a nuestros estudiantes técnica y estilísticamente para que en un largo o corto plazo sean capaces de hacer una buena audición y poder contribuir como buenos músicos a la orquesta que lograrán entrar.
Para eso no solo hacemos clases individuales sino mucha música de cámara y repertorio orquestal en grupos , no es lo mismo conocer los solos y partes que escucharlos y tocarlos en el contexto armónico y musical como son en la orquesta. Las clases en grupo además entrenan el aspecto escénico , desarrollando experiencia de atril y firmeza emocional.
Lograrás solo presentar bien tus solos en una audición si conoces el contexto en el cual están escritos. Quiero compartir con vosotros algunos ejemplos auditivos de nuestras clases de repertorio orquestal en la Brass Academy Alicante (pinchar los links).
Fidelio , Nury Guarnaschelli y sus estudiantes BAA
3 ª Sinfonía de Mahler
Lohengrin
8. Sinfonía de Bruckner
Por ultimo quiero dejaros un pequeño plan diario de puntos a tener en cuenta en vuestro estudio diario.
La idea es que SIEMPRE estés preparados y listo para hacer una buena audición y que no te debas preparar especialmente. Tu estudio diario debería entrenarte automáticamente para este fin.
- Técnica ( Flexibilidad , respiración, ataques, etc.)
- Estudios técnicos ( ritmo , afinación , articulación, fraseo )
- Conciertos
- Solos de orquesta , solo y tocando junto a una buena grabación.
- Escuchar a diario buenas orquestas con mucha concentración y quizás con una partitura en la mano si fuese posible.
- Ir a escuchar conciertos y funciones de opera regularmente.
- Tocar lo mas posible música de cámara o en orquestas ( jóvenes o profesionales)
- A diario yoga o deporte.
EXITOS !!!
NURY GUARNASCHELLI
Brass Academy Alicante
Meet Our New President
Interview of the Month - John Ericson
John Ericson received a 2018 Punto Award from the IHS. Individuals selected for the Punto Award shall have made a major contribution at the regional or national level to the art of horn playing. This contribution can be in any of a variety of areas, such as performance, teaching, research, or service to the IHS. John was recognized for his contributions as a performer and scholar, his past service to the IHS, and his promotion of the horn and its music through his online activities.
Mike Harcrow: "The mission of Horn Matters is: to encourage, inspire, inform, and challenge horn players; and, to promote the best musical instrument ever, the French horn." The Horn Matters mission statement is terrific, John, although a non-hornist might see the second goal as arguable. Do you believe the site is fulfilling its mission?
John Ericson: Our goal certainly is to fulfil that mission—and I believe we have—in that Horn Matters is a site with a positive tone and a big reach worldwide, presently toward 1,500 page views every day.
A word not to miss in the statement is “promote.” One thing every horn player needs to embrace is promotion of our instrument; we certainly could use more players! We hope that the information on the site is supportive to building the overall horn and “middle brass” community.
Of course, HM did not happen overnight. The site launched in September of 2009, making use of content from two existing blog sites: my own Horn Notes Blog and the Horndog Blog of Bruce Hembd. My blog content reaches back to June of 2004, with the underlying site that started it for me being my Horn Articles Online site, launched twenty years ago in August of 1998. Bruce has been online even longer; in 1996 he started the Hornplanet site of Thomas Bacon and the IHS Online. With those varied experiences, the mission of Horn Matters evolved over time as we developed the site you see today.
MH: What are the real strengths of HM, as you see it?
JE: On one level it is a huge website with over 1,500 articles. It has a little of everything in it, not just on the horn but on all the middle brass including mellophone and Wagner tuba.
However, looking a bit deeper, there is a “point-counterpoint” element to the content as well that gives it a bit of extra spark. Bruce and I met as students at Eastman way back in 1984. We are different people but have long had a good working relationship. Either of us, individually, would not have built Horn Matters, but together we were able to create something unique.
MH: Is there anything, as we approach ten years of HM, that you still hope to improve about the site or its content?
The Horn in Jazz History: 100 essential recordings for the Hornist
by Steven Schaughency
The following is a brief synopsis of the presentation given at the International Horn Society’s 50th Symposium. The intent was to introduce the audience to a sampling of the wide variety of musical situations the horn has found itself in over the last 100+ years. Since this space does not allow for an exhaustive or thorough overview, what follows will hopefully provide some basics for further exploration.
Often, a traditional education for hornists lacks any kind of basic overview of jazz history and more significantly, how correct performance practice (to use a classical term) applies to the diverse styles found within the idiom. As outsiders, we occasionally hear something played in a jazz style and think ”oh, that’s nice” but then return to playing and listening to music that our instrument is most associated with. Or we play the wonderful music of Alec Wilder, Doug Hill or some Fripperies and believe that we now have gained all we need to know about playing jazz style music. One can argue, in these situations, that most hornists have never seen the deep, jazz forest through the slightly jazz influenced, classical trees. Where does one start to discover the multitude of musical situations throughout jazz history that have included our instrument? Fortunately, almost the entire history of jazz music has been thoroughly documented through recordings. While performances of jazz certainly do involve on-the-spot improvisation and large sections of music that are never written down, recordings can still give us solid documentation of a moment in time in the development of the music.
The accompanying pdf list of 99 recordings(88 KB) is intended to give players a starting point for finding historically or musically significant tracks. The list is divided into 3 sections: the horn in big bands and orchestras, the horn in small group situations of less than 10 players, and the hornist as group leader.
- Big bands are often referred to as the orchestras of jazz music. They give composers and arrangers an opportunity to create more organized sounds. The horn has provided more possibilities in the palette of sound available to these writers.
- Small group situations, including those with hornists as group leaders, also provide similar possibilities, on a more intimate scale. We can easily consider this the chamber music of jazz.
- Last but not least are the many individual horn players who have participated in these recordings. While some tend to specialize in one particular area, others have taken part in scores of recording sessions over a wide spectrum of styles and groups.
Javier Bonet Video
