Teaching the Beginning Horn Student Focus on Fundamentals
by Carla Gallahan I
t is time for another school year to begin, and with it a new class of aspiring young horn players are entering our band programs.
The
fundamentals of playing -- including posture, hand position, embouchure formation, and mouthpiece placement -- are aspects we must focus on early in the instruction to set the students up for overall musical success and growth.
Horn Posture/Holding the Instrument
Control and comfort in holding the instrument are important to the student’s early success and confidence.
When
seated, the student should sit toward the front of the chair with both feet on the floor and his/her back straight. Since the horn is a rather large instrument, especially for some beginners, the student should sit in the chair at a slight angle with his/her right leg on the outside of the right chair leg. The student can then rest the bell of the horn on the outside of the right thigh and move his/her leg (backward or forward) to assist in adjusting the instrument height and mouthpiece alignment for proper playing position. The student should not contort his/her body to reach the mouthpiece; rather, he/she must be in control of the instrument and bring it comfortably to his/her embouchure. Attention to these details will result in an optimal position to begin instruction.
Hand Position
Left Hand - Proper left hand position is essential for establishing good technique on the horn. The student’s little finger may be placed in the support “hook.” However, the teacher must caution against tension. Tension may be caused either by the student’s straining to reach the support, thus causing stress in the hand and fingers, or by the use of force by the little finger in pushing the horn
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The embouchure is very important to tone production and careful attention must be provided in this area for the students to establish good habits.
While specific
steps for establishing a good horn embouchure are outlined in most beginning method books, a few reminders and “cautions” for teachers follow. Farkas, in his treatise on horn, The Art of French Horn Playing, advocates a “puckered smile” embouchure.
upwards “into” the embouchure causing undue pressure.
The student’s other
fingers should be placed on the valves in a natural, curved position. The student’s thumb should be placed on the thumb key on a double horn or the thumb rest on a single horn.
Right Hand - The placement of the right hand in the horn bell impacts both the tone and intonation of the horn. Thus, proper right hand placement is crucial for a horn player’s success on the instrument. The student’s fingers and thumb of the right hand should be together and the hand cupped slightly (as if holding a small amount of water).
The student
should place his/her hand inside the bell, in a vertical position, with the back of the fingers against the far side of the bell. The horn should be supported primarily by the thumb and index finger of the right hand in this position. Since hands (and horn bells) come in different sizes, exact placement will vary. If a muffled tone is produced, the hand either is in the bell too far or is “closing off” the bell and adjustments must be made accordingly. Likewise, an adjustment must be made if the tone is too open. The student’s hand can go farther in the bell or be relaxed slightly. The teacher and student must listen carefully to the tone and make slight adjustments, if necessary, in order to find the correct right hand placement.
Embouchure/Mouthpiece Placement
Perhaps the most apt description of the completely formed embouchure would be a “puckered smile.” In using this combination of puckering and smiling, let us not lose sight of the fact that we are trying to attain a beautiful, characteristic tone.
Perhaps
instinct and a critical ear are our best aids in combining these opposing muscular controls. The thin, hard tone is the result of too much smile, while the thick, dead tone and characteristic fuzzy attacks are the result of a too thickly puckered “whistling” embouchure.
Areas of concern involving the embouchure include air pockets (behind the upper or lower lip) and “puffy cheeks.”
These are signs that the
embouchure is not correct and must be addressed to achieve good control and tone on the horn. Once the embouchure has been established, placement of the horn mouthpiece should be approximately two-thirds on the upper lip and one-third on the lower lip. A good embouchure will allow the player to perform in all ranges without having to make changes in the position of the lips on the mouthpiece.
Armed with a solid foundation in proper posture, hand position, embouchure, and mouthpiece placement, the student is now ready to begin playing the horn. Repetition, assessment, and reminders by the teacher are necessary to establish proper performance habits. On-going focus on fundamentals is an important key to the young horn player’s success!
Carla Gallahan is Assistant Professor of Music Education, Coordinator of Music Education Interns, and Horn Instructor at TROY University.
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