Tips on Auditioning Horns, Part I: Carl Geyer, Paxman 25, Patterson Custom and Finke Americus

I have attended a number of international horn and brass conferences, but before last weekend I had never actually been to a regional workshop. The main thing in particular that I enjoyed with the Southwest Conference was the relaxed pacing of events. It always seems that at the international events, three or four things might be [...]

Over the weekend, I had pleasure of attending the Southwest Horn Conference. The event was expertly hosted by Rose French at the Center for Performing Arts at Paradise Valley Community College. The weather in Phoenix was an average from the mid-40′s in the morning, upwards of 70 degrees during lunch. I missed the first full [...]

Hearing music is not necessarily limited to the ears. Take for example musician, composer and speaker Evelyn Glennie. Ms. Glennie has been profoundly – not completely – deaf since the age of 12. She asserts that deafness in general is largely misunderstood by the public and she has taught herself to “hear” with parts of her body other than [...]

Continuing this series, another thing a very organized host does is be in contact with participants. The Southwest Horn Conference for 2012 is this coming weekend, and this week this final E-note went out from the host, which she has allowed Horn Matters to reprint in full. It is a great example of what should [...]

K. asks: I have been working with my horn teacher over the last few months on changing my embouchure. The problem I had in the past was I used too much upper lip pressure. I have been trying to change it, but no matter how hard or long I work at it (hours, days, weeks, [...]

Late last year I was challenged to think about the topic of mission statements, and specifically a mission statement for my teaching. At first I was resistant to the idea, as for some teachers the mission seems to be to break you! Show you just how little you know. I actually not long ago saw [...]