Skip to main content

The High School Hornist: What to Expect

The High School Hornist: What to Expect
Hello! And welcome to my blog! My name is Tracy Bass and I am currently finishing my Doctor of Music Arts degree at the University of Missouri - Kansas City Conservatory of Music and Dance. Thank you for checking out this blog! This is going to serve as home to projects I did during my time at UMKC and will also be a collective resource for high school students who want to major in music in college.
I got a late start to horn and never had private lessons before starting college. My first semester, I was put fourth horn in orchestra and had no idea what I was in for. I was expected to read bass clef and transpose which were two things that I had no idea that the horn did. My goal with this blog is to create a resource for high school students and teachers to use when preparing for what a horn player can expect to see at the collegiate level.
Below is a checklist of topics that will be explored. Each item will have its own blog post coming soon so be sure to check back for future posts!
Major scales and arpeggios - expanding over the full range of the horn
Minor scales - what are the three types and why do we need to know them all
Bass clef - a crash course in reading bass clef and how to select the best fingerings when playing below the treble staff, along with what old notation is and how to identify when a piece is written in old notation
Transposition - why we need to do this and how to become fluent in every key
Articulations - different types of attacks along with double and triple tonguing
Pedagogy books - which ones are must haves and how to approach them
Warming up - how to decide what works best for you
Etudes - what an etude is, how are they used, and where to start
Solos - why are Mozart and Strauss the most standard and how to find other works
Orchestral excerpts - what they are and why we use them
Practicing - a guide to using mindmapping and bullet journaling to plan your practice
Tuning - how to practice intonation and why a tuner should not be your best friend
Ensembles - the different types where the horn is found and how they are used
Section playing - how each member of the section contributes to the whole and how to create a positive environment
Other blogs and websites - other online resources that are out there and who their target audiences are
Degree options - a description of the types of degrees in music you can earn and the types of jobs they can create
Selecting a teacher and a school - what to look for in a teacher and a college program along with some red flags to watch out for
Selecting a horn - an overview of the different kinds of horns that exist and how/why people chose each
Selecting a mouthpiece - an explanation of what the different numbers mean, what the different parts are, and how to find what works best for you

This list will change and evolve throughout time! Leave a comment below if there is anything you wish was on this list!

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Women Writing Chamber Music

Women Writing Chamber Music For my Chamber Music Literature class, I created a presentation on chamber music works that have been written by women that include the horn. I wanted to write about works by women because they are so seldom heard. My goal was to find a video performance of each work so that the audience would have an audio and visual representation of the piece. This project was more difficult than expected in some ways. While there are a few resources that highlight chamber music by female composers, they are typically outdated and include pieces that I was not able to find any information on the composer, let alone the piece itself. The project was enjoyable to work on and I hope to be adding more pieces in the future. The current list highlights selections from 1849 to 2018. If you have any suggestions on pieces to add, please comment below! https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1MMmnOz8YykQakaPRcjYDzzHg0uwH97ch5ClT6KJjK8U
Post a Comment
Read more

Intonation

Intonation Learning how to play in tune with yourself and others should be a fun process for you. It takes patience and attention to detail, but the end results are life changing for your playing. First off, make sure you have a metronome and a tuner. There are lots of apps that exist today for these, but if you are willing to spend a little money, I recommend the TonalEnergy Tuner. This app lets you have the metronome and tuner going at the same time. You can also have the app play drones, which we will get to shortly. First, make sure that your horn is in tune with itself and a tuner. There are many different types of horns with different tuning systems so it is best to get help from someone with experience tuning the horn the first time you do this. I also have found this video by Matthew Hogan useful for students to get an introduction to tuning the horn. The best place to start is by learning your tendencies. Each note will require a little adjustment to get perfectly in ...
Post a Comment
Read more

Articulations

Articulations When you are playing each note, remember that there is a beginning, middle, and end. Each part of the note requires definition and equal attention. Articulations are often what causes us to make the most mistakes. There are different ways to approach articulations, but we are going to keep it simple with a “too” approach. Start by just slowly saying the word “too.” Feel the shape your mouth makes and where the tip of your tongue makes contact. It should be around the back of your top teeth, just where the roof of your mouth meets the teeth. This creates a well-rounded attack that works great on the horn. The higher in the range you are playing, your tongue will move further up from that position, and the lower you play, your tongue will move further down. This motion should happen naturally, but if you find yourself making unclear beginnings to notes, check in with where your tongue is making the initial attack. Make sure that after you make the attack, your t...
Post a Comment
Read more