Pedagogy – Dale Clevenger
Why did you choose to play the horn? I ask every new student this question. Invariably, the answer is ALWAYS the same…because they like the sound. It’s the reason that I play the horn. The tone quality of our instrument is without a doubt Unique, Special, Wondrous, and “Golden”.
Therefore the initial emphasis in my thinking, teaching, and playing is always about a Beautiful, Lovely, Refined, Diverse, Magical, Adjustable, Convincing, Compelling SOUND QUALITY! Our tone should attract and hold the attention of the listener. The horn player’s ability to accomplish this is dependent on two very important and obvious concepts in musical performance, expressed in the following terms for clarity in understanding my pedagogy.
| (What the player does | — | what the listener hears) |
| ATHLETICS (technical abilities) | — | ARTISTRY |
| WIND | — | SONG |
| PHYSICAL | — | MENTAL |
| PROCESS | — | PRODUCT |
We must consider also a player’s personality, schooling, goals, habits, abilities, skills, gifts, motivation, and traditions. Therefore there is an incredibly multifaceted variety of musicians who play the horn. Our “HORN WORLD” is so amazing, interesting, fascinating and diverse!
With this background of the broad concepts listed above, I will be more specific and list many (but surely not all) of the items which we must practice, study, and work on daily to try to arrive at the highest artistic level possible and necessary to be able to perform professionally.
Body, Center, Breathe, and Flow:
The Development of Brass Artistry Through Sound Fundamentals
by William Stowman
The most effective pedagogy is simple, repeatable, and effective. Throughout my career, I have always appreciated those perfectly stated phrases shared by teachers in lessons or master classes that seem to immediately make sense and have a lasting impact. It seems that great pedagogues have handfuls of these phrases at their disposal to wield at any given time and usually at the perfect moment. I have worked diligently to build such a vocabulary and work each day to add to my collection.
To that end, Body-Center-Breathe-and Flow was born of the need to create a simple, effective catchphrase that could serve as both an outline for instruction, as well as a powerful mantra heard by the player in the moments before sound is generated. In fact, the phrase itself fits beautifully into a four-beat preparatory pattern (1-and, 2-and, 3-and, 4) that reminds the player of the most vital aspects of making a great sound as they stand, or sit, to deliver.
Much work has been done to categorize the most important elements of efficient playing. The phrase Body-Center-Breathe-and Flow is a distillation of four common issues: Posture, Ergonomics, Breathing, and the Airstream itself. Couched in the idea of the Spiral Curriculum, these issues are introduced to beginners, then refined and repeatedly addressed with performers throughout their career. While the basic pillars remain a constant, the amount of detail associated with each one increases exponentially as players develop physically, gather more information, and gain experience. As a result, the system has been effective with students from the elementary level through the adult level.
In greater detail, for the purpose of instruction:
International Horn Society Contests and Scholarships!
By Heidi Vogel with Gergely Sugar
Over the years the IHS has run various programs that offer cash, performance and learning experience awards. The deadline for the contests and scholarships this year is April 1, 2018. Imagine having all your expenses paid to attend the 50th International Symposium in Muncie! How about the opportunity to perform at the Symposium? Cash awards? An orchestral coaching session for free? The key word is OPPORTUNITY! You can’t win if you don’t apply.
Many of our winners have gone on to illustrious careers involving the horn. One winner was asked about his experiences as a scholarship winner.
Gergely Sugar (GS) is a member of the ‘Wiener Symphoniker’, and a University Professor at the University for Music and Performing Arts Graz, Austria teaching both Double- and Vienna-Horn. Gergely won the Hawkins Scholarship Award in 1996, which covered his expenses to attend the International Symposium held in Eugene, Oregon that year. Being a student back then in Budapest at the Franz Liszt Academy, the scholarship was really everything. Without the financial help there was no way he could have been able to visit the workshop in Eugene.
We asked Gergely: Was the Symposium for which you were awarded the Scholarship your first IHS Symposium? If so, what was the experience like for you? If not, how did it feel attending as an honored student, playing in a masterclass, or recital?
GS: Yes, that was my first symposium and a long time dream of mine. It was just mind blowing. The whole world opened up at a blink of an eye. I loved every moment of it…. It felt like being shot to the stars.
IHS: Has the Scholarship had a positive influence in your experience/education/career? If so, how?
GS: The Scholarship had many influences on me, first and foremost, just to be able to be there and learn and listen and absorb. Then certainly the fact that my CV became suddenly serious. A winner is a winner, they took me at face value, it was easy to receive an invitation to auditions and, this one I only realized years later, some people even recognized me from the Newsletter at my audition in Vienna.
IHS: Anything else you would like to add about your experience with the IHS Scholarship/Contest program?
GS: If someone is willing to step into the headlight, international competitions, IHS contests and scholarships are one quick way to do it… It worked really well for me.
To see more about the IHS Scholarship and Award programs please click here.
Celebrating 50 Years of Symposia
By Jeffrey Snedeker, President, IHS
At IHS 50, the IHS will host five (5) 50-minute sessions, celebrating fifty years of symposia with panel discussion on various subjects. Current and past Advisory Council members, Honorary members, and other horn luminaries will serve as presiders and panel members for retrospective looks at the role of these symposia in The Development of Horn Pedagogy, Sound/Tone, The Business of Horn-Making, The Music Workplace, and the IHS itself. Each session will begin with a brief lecture by the presider, and then a panel discussion including questions from audience members.
Renowned pedagogue Douglas Hill will preside over the Pedagogy session, which will reflect on how pedagogy has evolved or even been influenced by past workshops. Frank Lloyd will preside over the session on Sound/Tone, which will explore how the concept of sound/tone of the horn has evolved over the past 50 years. Richard Bentson of Wichita Band Instruments will preside over the session on Horn-making; the panel for this session will feature horn makers and others who will consider the question: “How has the business of horn-making evolved over the past 50 years?” Nancy Jordan Fako will preside over the session on The Music Workplace, whose panel will reflect how issues of respect, equity, and gender issues have evolved in the music workplace over the past 50 years. Finally, I will preside over a session on the IHS itself, and the panel will present various perspectives on how workshops have both reflected and influenced the growth and priorities of IHS programs, including new music for horn, scholarship programs and competitions, the presence of the society in the music world, and more.
This celebration of 50 years of symposia and the parallel growth and development of our society should provide a lot of fun, memories, and provocative discussion. Please make time in your symposium activity schedule to attend these sessions!
Pedagogy Column — Christoph Eß, Lübeck/Bamberg, Germany
I’m very happy to write a pedagogical contribution for the IHS newsletter, at the invitation of Prof. Ab Koster. Today I will speak about chamber music and the importance of playing together, as I teach in my lessons.
I’ve just taken over the professorship at the Conservatory in Lübeck and am in the process of building up a new studio. To this end, it is of particular importance to bring together a good mix of very young students just starting with their bachelor’s degrees, alongside somewhat older master’s degree candidates who can also start gathering their first orchestral experience. Everyone can learn from everyone else in this context, improving their own playing and letting themselves be pulled along by those who are further down the road. I experienced this very thing during my studies in Stuttgart and would like to keep this model from the very beginning as the highest priority in my own teaching studio.
To achieve this, I started right off by putting together horn quartets within the class, with whom I can work in ensembles in addition to the private lesson (which of course is and should remain the most important component in the course of study).
Through my many years of experience in the most diverse of chamber music constellations, most of all in these past years through quartet playing with German Hornsound, I know how important mutual music-making, listening to one another, and especially communication in general (also outside of playing and rehearsal) are. Communication with colleagues and other students is something people particularly need to do well in every career, whether one becomes an orchestral horn player, chamber music specialist, or pedagogue. This is why I am diligent about bringing together and uniting various age and ability levels within each quartet. Through the medium of the quartet repertoire, we work on intonation, balance, playing together and in general achieving a common articulation and phrasing. This we do to create a quartet sound that allows each individual to be heard but nevertheless brings the sound quality and uniformity of the ensemble to the fore. Furthermore, I try to get the students to play as much chamber music with string players as possible. The way that string players phrase, differentiate, and communicate should also be goals for us horn players despite the technical difficulties that affect our instrument. We should hold ourselves to and imitate this standard.
In addition to quartet pieces, I also work with the ensembles in playing orchestral excerpts as a section. Aside from the many solo passages for first horn, we have a large number of duos (Beethoven symphonies, Mozart operas…), trios (Eroica, Fidelio, Dvorak Cello Concerto, Weber Clarinet Concerto…), and quartet or unison passages (Bruckner, Mahler, Wagner, Shostakovich, Strauss…), all which work together well and help ensure you stay fully aware of the other parts. Audition excerpts are an important component (as well as the joy and pain) of every student. Everyone has individual strengths and weaknesses, has passages that are harder or easier for them, and they notice that these will be different for each player.
In my experience, playing and working on the excerpts in a group setting, helps enormously, not only for working the notes into your chops for the audition and then after all that, often being nervous anyway, but also for having the feeling of the presence of the others from the group, even when they are not there.
Performing in front of others is another very important point for me. As often as possible, I hold internal practice performances, in which the students mainly play their audition repertoire. I also try to set up a large horn ensemble concert with the quartets once a semester, in which they can collaborate on octets or larger horn choir pieces as well. Aside from the individual problems that every horn player has and solves in private lessons, the vast majority of students also have troubles with stage fright. An important step to combat this is to make one’s performance become routine, thereby transforming the nervousness (the negative kind that makes the knees shake, the mouth feel dry, that makes the breathing shallow and closes off the throat) into positive energy, thus converting itself into the fun and joy of bringing something to the public; in the best case, going even further to create that certain special, magical something, that makes our vocation so wonderful.
Aside from his activities as solo horn of the Bamberg Symphony Orchestra, Christoph Eß has won several prizes in international competitions. Starting in the winter semester 2017/2018, he has followed his calling to become professor of horn at the Music Conservatory in Lübeck. He studied with Prof. Christian Lampert in Basel and Stuttgart and graduated with honors in June, 2008. The ARD Music Competition (2005), Prague Spring Competition (2007), the Richard-Strauss Competition, as well as the “Concorso per Corno di Sannicandro di Bari” have all awarded him prizes, among others. As a soloist, he has appeared with several leading orchestras in Germany, Switzerland, Austria, and Czechia. He is also a founding member of the horn quartet, “German Horn Sound.”
Translation: KMT
Some thoughts on coming to IHS 50
By David Amram
I am REALLY looking forward to coming back to IHS again for their Big 50 celebration. My very first IHS as a panelist-composer-jazz player, was held at Ball state in Muncie, for their SIXTH season, in 1974…44 years ago (!!!!) I remember meeting Frøydis, Barry Tuckwell, Fred Fox and other great players for the first time and having a memorable time surrounded by an army of killer horn players of all ages, who all shared a love for the instrument and for music and hadn’t succumbed to becoming ego-maniacal soured victims - but rather were friendly, enthusiastic and LOVED music!!
I’ll never forget seeing huge rooms jammed with French horn cases and late night-early morning non-stop music and philosophy sessions with the people whose horns were getting some sleep in that sea of cases while we all sat up, after the last horn had been put to bed.
And I remember a group of young hornists who said that I should join them. Since they knew from my bio that I was brought up on a farm and milked cows, I should join them for some fresh air and beer in a field close to the University. When we got to the field and began drinking the beers that were packed in the trunk of one of our unofficial tour guides, I noticed some hornists creep up to a sleeping cow and push it over. This was the first time in my life I had ever seen what I was told was “cow tipping”
I did a workshop called The Blues in F, invited everyone to bring their horns, and shared all that I had learned. Now 44 years later, I’m still doing it, and hoping I can pass on some BASIC ideas of how to harness the creativity that we are all born with, use the technique we acquire to execute the treasures of classical music, AND by improvising with others in ALL genres of music, to show that there IS life beyond Kopprasch!!
Entrevue du mois – Gene Berger, hôte du 50e symposium
Traduction de Marie-Michèle Bertrand
Kristina Mascher-Turner: Pouvez-vous nommer trois bonnes raisons de se rendre au 50e symposium cet été?
Gene Berger: Le thème est « Le cor : une histoire en or » (The Golden History of Horn). J’ai eu l’idée de revisiter les traditions et la merveilleuse histoire de notre répertoire et de nos interprètes. Puisqu’il s’agit du 50e anniversaire, je voulais inclure l’or dans la thématique. Nous ferons donc un retour sur les 50 dernières années de la société (IHS) et nous soulignerons les personnalités et évènements monumentaux qui ont marqué ce demi-siècle. Il y aura, entre autres, des conférences quotidiennes qui revisiteront certains évènements de notre passé. Un merci tout spécial à Jeffrey Snedeker, président, pour avoir peaufiné les détails de cette série de conférences. De plus, il y aura plusieurs ensembles auxquels les participants seront invités à se joindre pendant le symposium. Je rêve de voir tous les cornistes jouer, peu importe leur niveau, et rencontrer de nouveaux amis ou renouer avec d’anciennes connaissances.
KMT: Qu’est-ce qui vous a surpris le plus de votre rôle d’hôte jusqu’ici?
GB: Les surprises du monde moderne. Il y a eu, entre autres, des problèmes d’un point de vue juridique. Les universités sont très prudentes face à la question des mineurs, des transactions monétaires, et par rapport aux embauches d’invités par contrat sur le campus. Plusieurs détails sont continuellement en changement dans le système opérationnel d’une université. Les politique sont modifiées et c’est parfois impossible de le savoir avant de remettre un formulaire. La plupart du temps, il s’agit de changements dûs à des questions juridiques ou au fait que les institutions tentent de protéger et de comprendre les modifications des lois ou des règlements au niveau de l’État ou au niveau national.
KMT: Pouvez-vous nous parler un peu des artistes invités qui nous inspirerons pendant le symposium?
GB: Tout d’abord, nous recevrons le gagnant du International Horn Competition of America, Joshua Williams, qui se produira en récital et qui présentera la première d’un concerto de Amir Zaheri avec le US Army Field Band. Puis, lors de la dernière soirée du symposium, Frank Lloyd se joindra au même ensemble pour la première d’une composition d’Howard Buss. David Amram se produira avec l’ensemble de jazz Edlon Matlick et présentera une conférence pour tous intitulée « Les principes de base du jazz, blues en Fa » (Jazz Fundamentals, Blues in F). J’ai également invité Frøydis Ree Wekre, Gregory Hustis et Carolyn Wahl qui présenteront des cours de maître et conférences aux membres de IHS. Plusieurs nouveaux visages se joindront aux artistes invités dont Robert Danforth du Indianapolis Symphony, Kevin Rivard du San Francisco Opera, Jonathan Hammill du Tokyo Symphony et Leelanee Sterrett du New York Philharmonic. Bien sûr, nous retrouverons certains visages connus comme Karl Pituch, Elizabeth Freimuth et Denyse Tryon. Finalement, le Alloy Horn Quartet de la région de Chicago se joindra à nous comme ensemble invité sans oublier le fait que nous sommes très chanceux d’avoir le US Army Field Band en résidence pendant deux jours au symposium. Les activités se termineront d’ailleurs avec un concert de l’ensemble.
KMT: Tous ceux qui ont déjà organisé une conférence de cette taille connaissent bien l’énorme quantité d’heures qui doivent être mises dans la préparation. Comment conciliez-vous travail/famille cette année?
GB: J’ai veillé à être davantage disponible tôt dans la journée. En général, je réussi à abattre plus de travail et de pratique aux premières heures. J’essaie de me coucher tôt et de commencer tôt avec les détails. Je commence toujours avec mon réchauffement, avant même d’ouvrir mes courriels.
KMT: Parlez-nous du thème de la semaine, « Le cor : une histoire en or ». Que signifie-t-il pour vous et comment sera-t-il représenté pendant le symposium?
GB: Je voulais inclure le concept de l’or dans l’idée puisqu’il s’agit du 50e symposium. Puis, j’ai toujours été intrigué par l’histoire et les coutumes de l’instrument. Nous avons énormément de magnifiques traditions et compositions pour le cor. Je veux que les gens jouent et parlent de l’histoire et des traditions qui forment notre métier. Nous avons besoin de nous rappeler les raisons pour lesquelles nous jouons de cet instrument afin de bien lancer les 50 prochaines années. Les temps changent et nous avons une richesse de connaissances à notre disposition, mais il arrive que notre histoire perde de son éclat devant tant de nouvelles idées émergentes et peu de temps pour explorer le passé.
KMT: Y aura-t-il des excursions ou d’autres activités? Y a-t-il des attractions locales à ne pas manquer?
GB: Pour le moment, nous voulons organiser une pause-café tous les après-midis dans le centre étudiant où auront lieu les expositions et conférences. De plus, nous avons un magnifique marché public ouvert les mercredis soir et samedis matin pendant l’été. Je souhaite également organiser une grande réception après un des concerts où nous pourrons assister, je l’espère, aux finales de la compétition jazz. Finalement, le prix de la nourriture est relativement bas à Muncie et il y a plusieurs bars, microbrasseries et restaurants à distance de marche du pavillon de musique et/ou du centre-ville.
KMT: Qu’est-ce qui vous a inspiré à commencer le cor et qu’est-ce qui vous a motivé à continuer?
GB: Depuis la première année, j’ai toujours voulu jouer du cor. J’ai débuté avec la trompette, en 6e année, et après seulement trois mois, j’ai réussi à convaincre le directeur de mon harmonie de me laisser jouer du cor. J’ai eu la chance d’avoir un professeur incroyable comme chef d’orchestre qui a suggéré que je prenne des cours de cor avec Frederick Schmitt. Si vous ne connaissez pas Fred, faites vos recherches.
KMT: Quels conseils offririez-vous à ceux qui pensent devenir hôte d’une conférence?
GB: Assurez-vous d’avoir tout par courriel. La plupart des gens restent vagues à propos de leur prix et de leur fonctionnement dans de grandes institutions. Je suggère de vous rendre au bureau des opérations de votre établissement et de demander à votre président de négocier un contrat. Vous vous lancez vraisemblablement dans une situation unique et il se peut que l’université ne sache pas entièrement comment gérer l’idée. Rappelez-vous que chacun souhaite que la participation de son département/secteur soit rentable.
KMT: Vous êtes actifs en tant que musicien d’orchestre, chambriste et pédagogue depuis plusieurs années. Y a-t-il un aspect que vous préférez de votre carrière, et pourquoi?
GB: Je n’ai pas de préférence pour un aspect ou un autre de ma carrière. Ça n’a été que progression et recherche de balance. Certains aspects de jouer quotidiennement dans un orchestre me manquent, mais aujourd’hui, je sens que ma carrière est plus variée. J’aime beaucoup essayer de nouvelles choses et jouer à temps plein aurait pu restreindre la possibilité de nouvelles opportunités.
KMT: Quand vous avez un moment pour mettre le cor de côté, quels sont vos autres intérêts?
GB: J’ai beaucoup d’autres intérêts, mais le cor domine toutes mes activités. La plupart du temps, je suis occupé par mes obligations familiales; mes trois enfants et ma femme, qui endurent le cor et tout ce qui l’entoure. J’adore faire du surf, aller camper et partir en randonnée, mais je ne trouve plus le temps de faire ces activités aujourd’hui.
Gene P. Berger est professeur associé de cor à Ball State University et il est membre du Musical Arts Woodwind Quintet. En plus de son poste de professeur, M. Berger est le cor solo du Southwest Florida Symphony. Avant sa nomination à Ball State University en 2010, M. Berger était membre du Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra, du Cincinnati Pops et du Florida Orchestra. On peut l’entendre sur plusieurs enregistrements avec le Cincinnati Pops Orchestra, dirigé par Erich Kunzel, et sur les enregistrements gagnants de Grammys du Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra dirigé par Paavo Järvi.
M. Berger est un pédagogue actif, ayant enseigné à Interlochen Arts Academy et à Central Florida University. Il a offert des cours de maître, conférences, récitals éducatifs et ateliers à travers l’Amérique du Nord. Pendant la période estivale, M. Berger fait partie du corps professoral du Music for All Camp et du Filarmonica Joven de Colombia.
