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Articles by John Ericson

Indexed in reverse chronological order.

Seven Factors on Choosing a Teacher for Advanced Study

PUBLISHED: September 29, 2011, John Ericson

A former student mentioned that a question that they had been asked was why a student would choose to study with them? For those that teach or aspire to teach, especially on a high level, this is an important question to consider (and have a good answer for), and for those looking for a teacher [...]

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PSA: How to Position a Hand Strap on your Left Hand

PUBLISHED: September 27, 2011, John Ericson

At least a half dozen or so times I have seen horn students use a strap-on type hand strap but position it incorrectly. This type of strap (the Fhrap is one example) is a very handy thing but used incorrectly it can’t help much. In our first photo the strap is positioned correctly. Note that [...]

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Hand position & holding

On Holding the Horn and Tendinitis

PUBLISHED: September 22, 2011, John Ericson

Bruce Richards posted an article very recently to Living the Dream on the topic of horn player tendinitis. Richards and I go way back to Aspen in 1983 (more in this article); we are the same age and share it turns out some similar problems. For him four of the keys to working with his [...]

Hornmasters on Legato Tonguing

PUBLISHED: September 20, 2011, John Ericson

As a prelude to his general discussion of tonguing in Chapter 9 of The Art of French Horn Playing, at the end of Chapter 8 Philip Farkas kicks things off with a brief discussion of legato tonguing. Legato tonguing involves making a connection between the notes. In a legato phrase the player … must keep [...]

Horns on the Recital 2011: an Alto Range Adventure!

PUBLISHED: September 17, 2011, John Ericson

My 2011 recital at the Musical Instrument Museum is coming soon — Wednesday, Sept. 28, at 10:30 and 1:00 to be exact. On a program I have titled “French Horn, Tuben, and Alto Range Brass” I will be performing a variety of instruments. To open it will be French horn, my new one (and it [...]

How to see if you need a European Shank Mouthpiece

PUBLISHED: September 15, 2011, John Ericson

In my earlier article on European shank horn mouthpieces I noted that mouthpieces of this type have a larger shank and are designed to fit European make horns. There I quote the Laskey website and their brief note on what this shank type will do for you on some models of horn. This modification adds [...]

Putting the Slides Right

PUBLISHED: September 13, 2011, John Ericson

Another article from the original HTML Horn Notes Blog, dated 2/3/05, on a timeless topic. One of the advantages of studying with a competent horn teacher is that they know how to put the slides right on a double horn. Myself, I have tried many models of horn and while I try to not hold [...]

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Intonation
John Ericson & Bruce Hembd
on the French horn, brass related topics, and the field of classical music.