Horn Tutor logo 50 Horn Tutor : An online learning resource for hornplayers

* The Perfect Horn Sound

cathedral border 100

Indiana Arts Commission

This project is presented in part by the Indiana Arts Commission and the National Endowment for the Arts, a federal agency.

cathedral border 100

The Perfect Horn Sound

by Kerry C. England
Music Director, Indiana Horn Ensemble
French horn teacher, Purdue University

Horn players used to debate the subject of the perfect horn sound. The only conclusion that most came to was that there is no one ideal sound. Professional players will simply tell you that you should fit in with the prevailing standard in your region of the country in order to get work and to blend well in your ensembles.

Bright or dark

Many players describe horn sounds as either bright or dark. Some describe horn sounds as either warm or cool. Others describe horn sounds as either compact and centered or full and broad. Since it is hard to even describe the sound of the horn, how is one to decide what kind of sound to develop?

The well-supported sound

There is general agreement that a good sound is one that is well-supported by air. It begins with the player taking in a full, relaxed breath, spins forth on a wave of focused energy and maintains a consistent, relaxed fullness all the way to the end of each phrase. It should be a round sound, not a pinched one, and it should not be brassy except when asked for in the score.

Your air support should extend throughout all registers and throughout all dynamics. You should not artificially constrict your throat in order to play softly or to reach the high notes. You should not unnecessarily tighten the chest or force your sound forward in order to play louder. Your body mechanics should work in cooperation with the air stream and the physics of the horn itself in order to render just the minimum muscle tension necessary to do the job.

Examples to emulate

By listening to recordings of both European and American artists, you can absorb the essence of a variety of good horn sounds, both dark and bright and with vibrato or without vibrato. When you have listened to many types of artists, you may want to concentrate your listening to additional recordings by a particular player.

Some well-known players and their recordings:
Dennis Brain (1950’s England)
Herman Baumann (1970’s Germany)
Gregory Hustis (1990’s USA – Texas)
Froydis Ree Wekre (1990’s – Scandinavia)
Barry Tuckwell (1980’s England)
Dale Clevenger (1990’s USA – Chicago)
Gail Williams (1990’s USA – Chicago)
Vincent deRosa (1970’s USA – Los Angeles)
Myron Bloom (1960’s USA -- Cleveland)