John Ericson

A Horn Right Hand Position Survey

A great new resource has been posted in The IHS Online, “Two Surveys of European Horn Playing Styles.” What you will find there are...

Introducing the Marching Natural Horn, a High School Art Class Project

One small chapter of my story is the making of this marching natural horn. It was the first horn I made. I have always enjoyed...

Hornmasters: Farkas and Schuller on Practice

Horn teachers have always wanted their students to practice. Sometimes, the methods used are not healthy ones. The traditional take Farkas in The Art of French...

One Cause of Focal Dystonia in Brass Players

One of the most serious problems a brass player can face is that of an embouchure dystonia. Why it is such a hard problem...

The Vintage Conn 8D

Last week an article was featured on Cleveland.com, “Conn-Selmer Inc. turns out classic horns for world's best musicians.” Also last week I got back...

A Brief Look at the Dauprat Méthode

Louis-François Dauprat (1787-1868) was professor of horn at the Paris Conservatory from 1816 until 1842. His monumental three-volume Méthode de Cor alto et Cor...

Imprinted on a Sound

Thanksgiving can be a time of reflection, and recently I realized a somewhat deep thought with respect to sound. Starting on a basic level, the...

Hornmasters: The Exhale and Points of Resistance, Part III—My Turn

To conclude this short series I will step away from old horn methods and focus in on my take on the exhale and points...

Hornmasters: The Exhale and Points of Resistance, Part II

As I have noted elsewhere, horn teachers of days gone by seem to rarely have attacked each other directly. But if you read their...

Hornmasters: The Exhale and Points of Resistance, Part I

In this series of Hornmasters articles a topic I have honestly not looked forward to addressing is that of the points of resistance. It...