Hornmasters: Yancich on Mouthpieces

In A Practical Guide to French Horn Playing Milan Yancich notes with regard to mouthpieces that

Special care should be taken in the selection of the correct mouthpiece for the student. Unfortunately, there is no easy way to choose the proper mouthpiece….

When one begins to realize that there are at least 24 different bores to contend with, as well as different cup formations and rims, the problem becomes complicated….

In my opinion the student should start with a large-bore mouthpiece. This will automatically force the learner to take bigger breaths and use the necessary muscles for the development of his entire breathing apparatus.

Yancich also references Carl Geyer in relation to the secret of a successful mouthpiece.

According to the great horn maker, Carl Geyer, two-thirds of the horn players today use the straight cup mouthpiece, but in fifty years of observing hornists who have played for him, he states that there is no one mouthpiece. With the straight cup mouthpiece the problem of intonation is more easily handled than with the other two types of mouthpiece. If the cup of the mouthpiece is too short, the low notes of the horn register are difficult to play. If the cup is too long then the high notes suffer. The throat of the mouthpiece is of great importance to tonal production. The greater the development of the breathing apparatus in playing the horn the larger the opening required in the mouthpiece. The throat opening is, in essence, the secret of the successful mouthpiece.