It’s been a great three weeks, but Cannon Music Camp has come to an end for this summer. It was a pleasure working with the eager and talented students here, and I am grateful for the opportunity. We wrapped things up this week with a master class built around “must have” lists for horn players, i.e. music, equipment, and other items that I think every horn player should know about. In deciding what to present in the last studio class, I thought back on many of the questions that came up over three weeks of lessons. The list at the end of this post attempts to address, at least in part, some of those questions. It is not comprehensive, but is representative of the kinds of materials I use in my teaching. Though there are many, many more wonderful resources out there for horn players and teachers, these are the ones I keep coming back to and freely recommend.
I can’t wrap up this year’s camp without mentioning the numerous finale concerts at the end of the third week. All of the ensembles at Cannon performed very well, presenting exciting and challenging programs. Bravo! I want to extend a special thanks to Dr. Stephen Hopkins, Director of Cannon Music Camp, and Dr. Karen Robertson, Professor of Horn at Appalachian State University, for extending the invitation to teach at this year’s camp. Thank you as well to the counselors and other staff for their tireless efforts to make sure the day to day operations ran smoothly. Finally, I want to thank the horn students for all of their hard work in lessons, ensembles, and numerous other activities. Thank you for inspiring me, and good luck in this upcoming school year! Here’s a picture of the Cannon horn studio. Back row (L to R): James Boldin, Sada Harris, Nicholas Brooks, Chris Klim, Joshua Anderson. Front Row (L to R): Walter Bonar, Copeland Byars, Philip Norris, Raymond Adams.
Equipment, Books, Music, and More!
“Must-Have” Lists for Horn Players: Cannon Music Camp 2012
Books
Methods
- The Art of French Horn Playing, Philip Farkas
- Collected Thoughts on Teaching and Learning, Creativity and Horn Performance, Douglas Hill
- Thoughts on Playing the Horn…Well, Frøydis Ree Wekre
History
- The Cambridge Companion to Brass Instruments, Trevor Herbert and John Wallace
- Brass Instruments, Their History and Development, Anthony Baines
- Dennis Brain: A Life in Music, Stephen J. Gamble and William C. Lynch
Other
- The Art of Musicianship, Philip Farkas
- The Inner Game of Tennis, W. Timothy Gallwey
- Flow: The Psychology of Optimal Performance, Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi
Sheet Music
Warm-ups/Routines
- Warm Ups and Maintenance Sessions for the Horn Player, Douglas Hill
- The Brass Gym, Sam Pilafian and Patrick Sheridan, ed. John Q. Ericson
- Daily Routines for the Student Horn Player, Marian Hesse (http://hornroutines.com/)
- For more routines, see http://hornworld.me/2010/10/26/more-warm-ups-and-routines-for-horn/
Etudes
- Sixty Selected Studies for Horn, Kopprasch (http://cornopub.com/)
- Two Hundred New Melodic and Progressive Studies for Horn, Maxime-Alphonse (6 books)
- Ultimate Horn Technique, ed. John Ericson (http://www.hornnotes.com/)
- Ultimate Low Horn, ed. John Ericson (http://www.hornnotes.com/)
Solos
- Concerto No. 1 in D, K. 412; Concerto No. 2 in E-flat, K. 417; Concerto No. 3 in E-flat,K 447; Concerto No. 4 in E-flat, K. 495; Concert Rondo; Quintet for horn and strings, K. 407, W.A. Mozart [purchase in original keys, NOT transposed for Horn in F]
- Concerto No. 1, Op. 11; Concerto No. 2, Richard Strauss
- First Solos for the Horn Player and Solos for the Horn Player, ed. Mason Jones
- The Horn Collection, G. Schirmer (3 volumes, with accomp. CD)
Excerpts
- Horn Player’s Audition Handbook, ed. Arthur LaBar
- The Orchestral Audition Repertoire For Horn: Comprehensive and Unabridged, ed. David Thompson
Equipment
Horns (a few recommendations)
- Yamaha 667, 667V, 668, 668V
- Conn 10D, 11D, 8D, V8D
- Hans Hoyer G-10, 6802, 7802
- Paxman 20, 23, 25
- Alexander 103
- Handmade Custom Horns ($$$) include: Rauch, Berg, Sorley, Englebert Schmid, Patterson, Hatch, Medlin, Hill, Lewis, Lewis-Duerk, and more…
Mouthpieces
- Laskey, Houser, Moosewood, Stork, Schilke
Mutes
- Straight Mutes: Balu, Trumcor, Moosic, Marcus Bonna
- Stop Mutes: Balu, Alexander, Tom Crown
- Practice Mutes: Balu, Wallace, Best Brass, Faxx
Cases
- Marcus Bonna, Thompson Edition, Protec, BAGS
Other
- Hetman Lubricants
- Leather Specialties (left hand guards)
- Alexander and Englbert Schmid (left hand supports)
Websites
General
- Hornmatters
- Horninsights
- University of Iowa Horn Studio
- International Horn Society
- Horn Excerpts
- James Boldin’s Horn World Blog
Instruments
Sheet Music
Videos
Recordings
- The London Horn Soundand The London Horn Sound Big Band, Give it One
- Vienna Horns and Vienna Horns, Director’s Cut
- Hermann Baumann Collection (7 CD set)
- Dennis Brain, The Horn Player (4 CD set)
James Boldin's Horn World 