por Ricardo Matosinhos
Uau, setembro passou num instante! Agradeço a todos que contribuíram para a minha campanha de crowdfunding, que superou largamente o objetivo inicial.
Nasci em Portugal e divido as minhas atividades musicais entre o ensino, a performance e a composição. O chamado "triângulo da plenitude musical", tal como descrito por Douglas Hill, é também complementado pela investigação. Consequentemente, várias das minhas composições são inspiradas em aspetos pedagógicos. Sou também autor de vários artigos e livros, incluindo um livro infantil que adaptei para um musical. A criatividade está sempre presente, e, no fim de contas, as minhas atividades são sustentadas por um polígono com uma infinidade de lados.
Neste CD estão incluídas seis peças compostas por mim. Tocar a minha própria música é sempre especial. Quando era estudante, comecei a compor logo que iniciei o estudo da trompa, mas apenas para outros instrumentos, principalmente para piano. Demorei dez anos até ter a coragem de compor uma peça original para trompa (os meus 12 estudos jazzísticos), e desde então tem sido uma jornada fantástica. Há três peças a solo (Pastoral, Mirage e Improviso) que são opus consecutivos, mas apresentam diferentes carateres, já que foram compostas para diferentes intérpretes. Depois, há duas obras para tuba wagneriana e piano, Siegfried e Fafnir, com um caráter heróico, e a Song Without Words, que apresenta este instrumento dos deuses de Valhalla com um toque jazzístico. Esta última peça foi estreada por Robert Palmer no IHS 51, em Ghent, e aqueles que assistiram ao IHS 54 talvez se lembrem de me ter ouvido tocar esta peça numa trompa. Há ainda uma peça para trompa e piano, Song for Emma, que foi escrita para a trompista e compositora australiana Emma Gregan, como forma de agradecimento pela sua aceitação em escrever a peça Rose-Colored Glasses.
Com o lançamento deste CD para trompa (tuba wagneriana) e piano, decidi criar um pequeno concurso online para os subscritores da "Horn and More", a newsletter da International Horn Society. Já ofereci dois CDs na edição de setembro a Veronika Redfern e Wendy Anne Bartel. Se não foirápido o suficiente, ainda há esperança! Vou oferecer mais dois CDs às duas primeiras pessoas que responderem corretamente às perguntas fornecidas nas edições de outubro e novembro. Se foi um dos vencedores da edição de setembro, pode competir novamente, mas, se ficar nos dois primeiros lugares, o CD será atribuído ao próximo da lista.
by Ricardo Matosinhos
Wow, September flew by! I want to thank everyone who contributed to my crowdfunding campaign which far exceeded its initial goal.
I was born in Portugal, and my musical activities are divided between teaching, performing, and composing. The so-called "triangle of musical wholeness," as described by Douglas Hill, is also enriched by research. As a result, many of my compositions are inspired by pedagogical concepts. I am also the author of several articles and books, including a children's book that I adapted as a musical. Creativity is always present, and ultimately, my work is supported by a multifaceted approach.
This CD includes six pieces which I composed. Performing my own music is always special. As a student, I began composing as soon as I started playing the horn, but only for other instruments (and mainly the piano). It took me ten years to have the courage to compose a piece specifically for the horn (my 12 jazzy etudes), and since then, it has been a fantastic journey. There are three solo pieces (Pastoral, Mirage, and Improviso), which are consecutive opus numbers but which exhibit different characters, as they were written for different players. Then, there are two works for Wagner tuba and piano: Siegfried and Fafnir, heroic in nature; and finally, Song Without Words presents this instrument of the gods of Valhalla with a jazz vibe. This last piece was premiered by Robert Palmer at IHS 51 in Ghent, and those who attended IHS 54 might remember hearing me perform it on a horn. Additionally, there is a piece for horn and piano, Song for Emma, written for Australian horn player and composer Emma Gregan, as a token of appreciation for her acceptance to write the piece Rose-Colored Glasses.
To celebrate the release of this CD for horn (including Wagner tuba) and piano, I have decided to organize a small online contest for subscribers of Horn and More, the newsletter of the International Horn Society. I already gave away two CDs for the September edition to Veronika Redfern and Wendy Anne Bartel. If you missed it, don’t worry! I will offer two more CDs to the first two people who correctly answer the questions in the October and November editions. If you were one of the September winners, you can participate again, but if you place in the top two, the CD will go to the next person on the list.
For the past two-and-a-half years, Dan Grabois has provided the anchor piece of Horn and More, our Pedagogy Column. Now, we say farewell to Dan who took over the Pedagogy Column from Ab Koster. Additional responsibilities at the University of Wisconsin-Madison prevent him from continuing in this significant role. The Column took on a very different look during his tenure with Horn and More, but it held the same gravitas as all that Ab had done for the International Horn Society through the Newsletter. We will miss you, but we are grateful for the legacy you have left the horn community through your many solicitations, personal contributions, and informative interviews. Thank you, Dan!
A different approach to building an embouchure: mapping out the way your lips are spread out from the point where the vibration starts outwards.
by Denys Derome
I have been teaching horn at McGill University for close to 25 years. Like many of you, when I started playing the horn, my first teacher was rather vague in terms of step-by-step indications. My main instructions were to put the horn mouthpiece on my lips, avoid puffing my cheeks, focus on firmly tensing up my chin and the muscles at the corners of my lips, and build more power in my corner lip muscles through consistent horn practice. As the years have passed and I have spent time observing my own playing and working with students, I have come to realize that we often tense up certain facial muscles too much and end up preventing other muscles from doing their work more efficiently. Small changes to how you use the embouchure muscles can lead to greater results in tone quality, stamina, efficiency, and frankly, much more enjoyment. Obviously, not everyone reading this will want to urgently make changes to the way they produce sounds on the horn. If what you are doing is working for you, please, forget this presentation and let me salute your joy for playing the horn and wish you continued success. On the other hand, if you are curious to see how building an embouchure could be done a bit differently, if you have a problem with students sometimes rolling in their bottom lips in the high register, or if you sometimes wonder if a student might be better served with by a mouthpiece with a wider diameter, this presentation is for you.
When discussing how to create an embouchure with students, I break down my explanations into five steps. Here is a synopsis of each of those steps:
1- Bring awareness to the line of contact between your lower and upper lip when your mouth is at rest. Give attention to the points (line) of contact between your lips when your mouth is closed. Map out mentally (visualize, memorize) the sensation of where on the lower lip the top lip is touching and where on the top lip the lower lip is touching. You always want to go back to this position the instant your lips stop vibrating. This means no rolling in of the bottom lip or any other position than where your lips meet each other when your mouth is closed and the muscles are relaxed. Look in the mirror to have a visual memory as well.
2- Bring awareness to the orbicularis oris muscle. While you are looking in the mirror, observe the position of the corners of your mouth at rest. There is one multilayered muscle that surrounds your lips. This muscle is called the orbicularis oris. Literally translated from the Latin “circular mouth muscle.” There are many facial muscles involved in building an embouchure, but for the purpose of this presentation, I would like to bring your attention to this specific muscle:
The most efficient way to create your embouchure is to keep the orbicularis oris engaged in a slight “OUUU” setting. An “EEEE” setting will require more tension than necessary and is more likely to let slip in the bad habit of rolling your lips in and out and never establishing a constant line of contact between your lips. The gentle “OUUU” setting will allow you to maintain the same line of contact between the lips. This setting will allow more blood flow and less tension.
The closer to the mouthpiece the orbicularis oris is set, the less force will be required to generate the appropriate tension for your vibrating lips inside the mouthpiece. If you do not develop awareness of the gentle involvement of the orbicularis oris, you risk working against this muscle by constantly trying to lock it forcefully into a position away from the mouthpiece. At that point, your muscles are fighting against each other. Ultimately, the gentle “OUUU” setting means a richer tone, more stamina, easier recuperation after loud playing, and less swelling after very sustained loud playing. (For the more advanced player, the big difference here is that the closer to the mouthpiece you bring to orbicularis oris muscle, the more relaxed your lip behind the mouthpiece has to be. If you are used to playing on an “EEEE” setting, it will take a bit of time to get used to relaxing the lip and realize just how much less effort is needed and how much fuller the sound becomes on the “OUUU” setting.)
3- Free Buzz. After taking time to observe how the orbicularis oris works, go back to feeling the line of contact between your lips when your mouth is closed and your muscles are at rest. Now, we want to find out how to get a vibration in our lips from our neutral lip position. Create a buzz, no matter what pitch—preferably middle to low register, but we will take whatever you can create. Whether your lips are at rest or vibrating, your mind stays on feeling the line of contact between the lips. I only use free buzzing to help map out the spread of the lips. In my teaching, I use free buzzing very sparingly
4- Introduce the mouthpiece to your vibrating lips with your new lip spread. While you are buzzing, place the entire thickness of the lower rim of the mouthpiece on the skin part immediately below the red part of your lower lip. Stop buzzing but do not move any of your lip spread while you now gently cover your lips with the rest of the mouthpiece. This is the moment where you take a look at the diameter of your mouthpiece. Does the mouthpiece rest on the skin parts of your top and bottom lip? If you fall short and the upper part of the mouthpiece ends up resting on the red part of your lips, your mouthpiece diameter is too small for your lips. You should look for a greater diameter. Too many students try to squeeze their lips into a mouthpiece with a diameter too small for their lips. When you place the mouthpiece on the lips, imagine that there is a tiny drop of glue on the top part of the rim and a tiny drop of glue on the bottom part of the rim. You will now imagine that the top and bottom parts of the rim will be glued to your skin whenever the mouthpiece is on your lips. The top part is “glued” to the skin right above the red part of your top lip. The bottom part of the rim is “glued” to the skin as it touches the skin right below the red part of your lower lip.
5- Put it all together. With the mouthpiece “glued” to your lips, relax the musculature and stay glued with closed lips. Take a big breath through the nose and now buzz through the mouthpiece. Your musculature will now be interacting with the mouthpiece. The spread inside your mouthpiece remains the same but the orbicularis oris is now ready to engage and move ever closer to the center of your lips than when you were free buzzing. Repeat this a few times and finally add the horn to your mouthpiece and you are all set!
Thank you for reading. I wish you happy experimentation with these ideas.
Denys Derome
McGill Schulich School of Music, Horn Instructor
Orchestre Symphonique de Montréal, Associate Principal Horn
by Vidhurinda Samaraweera
Brahms’ Horn trio is very special to me. I have wanted to perform it since I was 14 years old, but I patiently waited for my teacher’s approval to start learning the work. It took a while since it requires a great deal of emotional maturity, understanding, and experience as a performer. The only performance in Sri Lanka prior to mine was allegedly done by the legendary player and pedagogue Alan Civil in the 1950’s or 60’s. I have no evidence in writing to substantiate this claim, and the hearsay evidence of a veteran musician in Sri Lanka remains the only proof. While it was certainly a challenge to follow Mr. Civil, the only consolation for me was that there are not many still living to make comparisons of the latter with the former.
The concert was held at the Goethe-Institut Hall in Colombo on the 23rd of August 2024. I was joined by veteran Sri Lankan violinist, Ananda Dabare, and an accomplished Lithuanian pianist now living in Sri Lanka, Aleksandra Kolpakovaite. The concert was attended by an audience of just over 100, and the venue was fully booked. Considering that it was a chamber setup, and the fact that it is a serious program, the outcome, in my estimation, was very good.
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L to R: Ananda Dabare (Violin), Aleksandra Kolpakovaite (Piano) and Vidhurinda Samaraweera (Horn)
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I did not have the luxury of studying the natural horn (Waldhorn) nor do I own one. As a valve horn player, one of the hardest challenges was emulating the timbre of a Waldhorn when playing the valve horn. Therefore, to achieve a softer tone at a relatively low dynamic, I opted for a more closed hand position in the bell. It was an excellent way to change the color (to what Brahms likely preferred). As we prepared, we worked hard to achieve a good balance.
Key Takeaways
At a time and in a region where classical music concerts often go unnoticed, the program received much praise from those attending. I had the privilege of giving a brief introduction of the piece before the performance which seems to have been appreciated by the audience, although such a thing is generally perceived here as being unconventional.
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Vidhurinda Samaraweera giving the audience a brief introduction about the Trio at the performance
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Some were even brought to tears at the performance. One of the most memorable comments I received from an audience member was that during the intimately written lullaby-like passage in the Scherzo, she locked eyes with her baby and instantly felt loved. She went on to say it was the first time she ever saw or heard a horn being played live. It is my view that we, as a nation, are making slow but steady progress in horn playing, and I am confident that the small steps we are taking will carry us far.
I wish to conclude by quoting an old Sinhalese song (translated) that encapsulates the importance of investing in the future:
Our ancestors planted seeds in the past;
We are enjoying their fruits now.
It is our responsibility to do the same
For the generations yet to come!
por Ricardo Matosinhos
Olá a todos os trompistas e entusiastas da trompa que recebem mensalmente a newsletter Horn and More da International Horn Society. Este mês, estou muito feliz por anunciar o lançamento do meu CD. Lançar uma gravação é sempre um momento especial, mas neste caso, torna-se ainda mais especial devido às histórias que estão por trás dela. Para celebrar o lançamento deste CD, vou oferecer 2 CDs às primeiras pessoas que responderem às perguntas publicadas nas edições de setembro, outubro e novembro. Acredito que isto vai ser divertido!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FhI67mbya-I
As peças incluídas nesta gravação nasceram todas da minha investigação de Doutoramento intitulada “Definição e Análise dos Elementos Idiomáticos em Obras Compostas por Trompistas.” Resumidamente, esta investigação teve como objetivo identificar os elementos específicos que tornam uma peça idiomaticamente adequada para a trompa, com foco em obras compostas por trompistas, nativos do idioma trompístico. Esta compilação oferece uma seleção dessas peças, criando paisagens sonoras únicas—ou mais apropriadamente, Hornscapes. A trompa é um instrumento notável, capaz de produzir um som rico e brilhante, ao mesmo tempo que se funde com as cores tonais delicadas dos sopros de madeira. Além disso, este CD inclui duas peças compostas por mim, que apresentam a Tuba Wagneriana em cenários musicais contrastantes. Ao longo destas gravações, encontrará vários géneros e uma multiplicidade de técnicas avançadas. No entanto, é importante notar que estas técnicas não são meramente uma demonstração da destreza técnica do intérprete, mas sim uma demonstração das diversas possibilidades e expressões da trompa.
Estou também a organizar uma campanha de crowdfunding para ajudar a cobrir os custos do lançamento do CD. Se quiser contribuir, pode receber um CD ou até mesmo uma peça composta por mim e dedicada a si. Veja estas informações aqui: https://ppl.pt/pt/horn
Agora é a altura para a primeira pergunta deste jogo. Está pronto?
by Ricardo Matosinhos
Hello to all horn players and horn enthusiasts who receive the Horn and More newsletter from the International Horn Society each month. I’m very happy to announce the release of my CD this month. Releasing a recording is always a special moment, but in this case, it becomes even more special because of the stories behind it. To celebrate the release of this CD, I will be offering 2 CDs to the first people who respond correctly to the questions posted in the September, October, and November editions. This is going to be fun!
The pieces featured on this recording were all born out of my DMA research titled Definition and Analysis of Idiomatic Elements in Works Composed by Horn Players. In a nutshell, this research aimed to identify the specific elements that make a piece idiomatically suited for the horn, focusing on works composed by horn players themselves, those who are native speakers of the hornistic idiom. This compilation offers a selection of such pieces, creating unique soundscapes—or more appropriately, Hornscapes. The horn is a remarkable instrument, capable of producing a rich and brassy sound while also blending with the delicate tonal colors of woodwinds. Additionally, this CD includes two pieces I composed, showcasing the Wagner Tuba in contrasting musical scenarios. In these recordings, you will encounter various genres and a multitude of extended techniques. However, it is important to note that these techniques are not merely a display of the performer’s technical prowess but, rather, demonstrate the diverse possibilities and expressions of the horn.
I am also organizing a crowdfunding campaign to help cover the costs of the CD release. If you would like to contribute, you can receive a CD or even a piece composed by me and dedicated to you. Check out the info here.
Now it’s time for the first question of this game. Are you ready?
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