Play the French Horn

The French horn is one of the most difficult of the standard orchestral wind instruments to play. Mastery happens through dedicated practice and perseverance. The reward of playing this versatile instrument is indescribable.

Steps

Mastering the Basics

  1. Learn the proper way to hold the horn. As with any instrument, there’s a proper way to hold your French horn to get the best sound possible when you play it.
    • Sit up in a chair with your back straight so that you can breathe into the horn without obstruction.
    • Put your feet flat on the floor, parallel to each other.
    • Hold the horn at a 45-degree angle with the mouthpiece toward your face. Cup your hand and place your left thumb on the thumb key. Put your left index, middle, and ring fingers on the three keys on top. Your left pinkie should be through pinkie ring, and your right hand inside of the bell.
    • Now that your fingers are in place, bring the horn up so that the mouthpiece is against your lips.[1]
  2. Form an embouchure with your lips. To blow into the mouthpiece, you have to first learn how to purse your lips. This is called, “embouchure.”
    • Practice saying, “mmmm” with your mouth, slowly adding pressure between your lips. Your lips should form a frown.
    • The corners of your mouth should stay in place, almost as if you’re puckering your lips.[2]
    • It’s a good idea to practice in front of a mirror to make sure you’re getting your form right.[3]
  3. Blow into the horn. Without pressing any of the valves, you can use the embouchure technique to blow into the mouthpiece of the horn.
    • You want to blow into the horn using fast, quick blows.[3]
    • Make sure you’re not pressing your mouth into the mouthpiece too hard. If your teeth hurt or a ring appears on your lips, you’re pressing too hard. You want a relaxed tension against the mouthpiece when you blow into it.[4]
  4. Memorize the keys. It will make your life a lot easier to learn exactly where the keys are so that your fingers know where to go when you’re playing.
    • Through repeated playing muscle memory builds, so your fingers know where the keys are.
    • Practices pressing the keys, knowing which keys you’re pressing. Do this until you can pass a test of accuracy.[5]
    • It can help to have a fingering chart while you practice.[6]
  5. Learn how to control volume. The volume of the notes you play will depend on how much air you blow into the horn, and how fast. The more air you blow, and the faster you blow it, the louder the note will sound (and vice versa).[7]

Learning to Read Music

  1. Learn how to read sheet music. To be a good French horn player you’ll want to learn how to Read Music.
    • Sheet music is the basis of many musical performances. You can also learn by ear, but most songs are played from sheet music.
    • Learning sheet music gives you a deeper understanding of how your instrument works, as well as music theory.[8]
  2. Learn the notes you’re playing. The most basic thing you’ll learn first is the order of the notes and how they’re placed on a music staff.[9]
    • Many parts go into the relationship between notes and the staff. That's why this piece is so fundamental.
  3. Understand the clefs. Once you’ve memorized the notes, the next step is to understand how the clefs work.[10]
    • There are two clefs that can show up on a music staff. The treble clef notates the higher pitches of music, and the bass clef notates the lower pitches.
  4. Recognize the tempo. Sheet music notates how fast or slow a song is by the tempo. It’s usually notated at the top of the sheet using a BPM (beats per minute) measurement.[10]
  5. Play a simple melody. Once you have a pretty good understanding of the basics of sheet music, try playing a simple melody. Pick something that only has a few notes and practice until you’ve mastered it.
  6. Play more complex melodies. Eventually, you can practice playing more complex melodies. This will help you play your instrument better and help you become better at reading sheet music.
    • Pick music that has a variety of note structures, clefs, and tempos.

Becoming a Better Player

  1. Play standing up. Now that you can hold your instrument and play sitting down, it’s time to play standing up. A French horn weighs about 4 pounds.[11] There won’t be many times when you’ll need to play standing up, but recitals are a common one.[12]
    • Since your right hand is in the bell anyway, just slide it up to the top of the bell so that it’s resting on your hand. All your other hand placements stay the same.
    • You can buy small modification pieces that help hold up the horn easier.
  2. Learn advanced techniques. Once you’ve mastered the basics you’re ready to learn more advanced playing techniques. It can be helpful to recruit a tutor or advanced player for these skills.
    • Muting (or stopping) the horn creates a high-pitched sound from the bell. You can stop the horn by moving your hand further into the bell until it’s in all the way. Twist it until little or no air can get out.[13]
    • Slurring notes are playing two notes without stopping or releasing between. To do this you’ll continue to change the notes on your keys but your airflow remains constant and steady.[14]
    • Playing glissando is starting and ending on specific notes while playing as many notes between as you can.[15]
  3. Get lessons. Lessons are a great way to learn advanced skills and get feedback on your progress. You can hire private tutors or join group classes. Some classes will play at events, giving you an opportunity to show off your new chops.
  4. Watch tutorial videos. You can find a lot of useful tutorial videos online. Some of them will teach you to play using sheet music, and some will teach you to play by ear. If you search, you should find what you’re looking for.
  5. Practice, practice, practice. The most effective way to become a better horn player is to practice. Make time to play your horn on a regular basis. Create challenges for yourself by upping the ante on songs you play.
    • You can get books of sheet music that have a variety of songs with different levels of difficulty.
    • Tutor books sometimes include training schedules, often with lessons on reading sheet music.[16]
  6. Ask questions. Don’t be afraid to ask questions when you get stuck or aren’t sure how to do something. There are lots of places you can go to get your questions answered.
    • You can consult tutors, French horn websites, video comment threads, and forums.

Caring for Your French Horn

  1. Store your horn in a sturdy case. When you’re not playing your horn, store it in a padded case. Most cases have a hard shell to protect it from damage.
  2. Clean the instrument after you play it. Each time you play your horn you should clean it. This will prolong the life of the instrument.
    • Polish it using a polishing cloth. If it’s dirty, you can apply polishing gauze with a cloth.[17]
    • Let the interior of the instrument dry. Remove the valve slides and dry those while the rest of the body is drying.[17]
  3. Conduct maintenance once a week or so. Every week or two you’ll want to conduct routine maintenance on your instrument to make sure it stays in good condition for as long as possible.
    • Clean the mouthpiece with dish soap and water. It might also be helpful to use a mouthpiece brush, which you can find at most music stores.[18]
    • Oil the rotors and valves. Remove the valve caps and apply key oil to the pivot points and bearing shaft.[18] You’ll know the valves need to be oiled if they stick.[19]
    • Apply slide grease to the tuning slides. Remove them, put the grease on them, and replace them.[18]
  4. Clean your instrument thoroughly every few months. Every once in a while, you should do a full cleanse on your horn. That means flushing out the entire instrument with soap and water. Use a brush to clean the tuning slides.[20]
    • If you want to take special care you can use brass soap to clean the horn.[17]
    • Make sure you apply grease to the tuning slides before putting them back on the body of the horn.[18]
  5. Repair any broken pieces. If anything on your horn breaks, take it to a shop and get it repaired. It’s a delicate piece of machinery that won’t work if some of the parts are defective.

Tips

  • Do NOT use a snake to clean out the rotary valves; the tolerance inside the valves is extremely small, and if a fiber from the snake breaks off inside, the valve will be unable to rotate.
  • Note that the actual *technique* of playing the horn is different than any other instrument; for example, the position of the horn mouthpiece on the lips is different than the position of the trumpet mouthpiece. If you are starting the horn after experience with another wind instrument, be sure to get tips from a teacher or other person familiar with proper horn technique!
  • Some horns don't have a spit valve, and their tuning slides won't come out all the way. If this applies to your horn, blow air through it. Then, take the mouthpiece out and turn the entire horn like a steering wheel. The "water" (spit) should come out of the bell. You may have to do this several times.
  • If you’re not sure you want to play the French horn long-term, renting might be a good idea before making the investment of buying.
  • On The Bottom/Side: The sound has more upward area to expand, it's easier to play with, but the arm blocks some of the sound.
  • On The Top/Side: Basically, it allows the sound to expand more freely.
  • Prior experience can help. Some horn players begin their musical careers as trumpet players, woodwind players, or even pianists and vocalists. Whether through playing technique or just theory, use what you have already learned to your full advantage.
  • A good scale to start off with is C. It goes C (no valves down), D (first valve down), E (no valves), F (first valve), G (no valves), A (first and second valves), B (second valve), top C (no valves).
  • Horns vary, people's pitches vary, and the great thing is a hand can move. So adjust your sound to the quality you want it to be at using your hand. There is really no standard set way.
  • If you’re just learning the French horn, consider a single horn (versus a double horn). They come in two sizes: a Bb (or B flat) or F horn. They tend to be easier to learn on than a double horn.[21]

Warnings

  • Be considerate of other people when you're playing.
  • Avoid sharing your mouthpiece with other people.[20]

Things You'll Need

  • Horn
  • Slide grease
  • Valve oil
  • Repair/cleaning kit (including extra valve strings - trust me, you will need them)
  • Etude (study) books

Related Articles

  • Become a Virtuoso Hornist
  • Tune a French Horn
  • Improvise on the French Horn
  • Hold a French Horn

Sources and Citations

  1. ↑ https://cosmolearning.org/video-lectures/how-to-hold-the-french-horn/
  2. ↑ https://cosmolearning.org/video-lectures/how-to-use-embouchure-lips-on-a-french-horn/
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 http://www.amromusic.com/amro-blog/posts/how-to-play-the-french-horn
  4. ↑ https://cosmolearning.org/video-lectures/how-to-use-mouthpiece-pressure-on-a-french-horn/
  5. ↑ https://cosmolearning.org/video-lectures/sounding-notes-on-a-french-horn/
  6. ↑ http://www.amromusic.com/assets/1942/french_horn_hi-res_fingering_chart.pdf
  7. ↑ https://cosmolearning.org/video-lectures/understanding-volume-dynamics-on-a-french-horn/
  8. ↑ http://www.amromusic.com/amro-blog/posts/how-to-read-music
  9. ↑ http://www.essential-music-theory.com/grand-staff.html
  10. ↑ 10.0 10.1 http://www.musicnotes.com/blog/2014/04/11/how-to-read-sheet-music/
  11. ↑ http://finkehorns.de/english/Detail_B.html
  12. ↑ https://cosmolearning.org/video-lectures/how-to-play-the-french-horn-standing-up/
  13. ↑ https://cosmolearning.org/video-lectures/stopping-muting-on-a-french-horn/
  14. ↑ https://cosmolearning.org/video-lectures/slurring-notes-on-a-french-horn/
  15. ↑ https://cosmolearning.org/video-lectures/how-to-play-glissando-notes-on-a-french-horn/
  16. ↑ http://www.paythepiper.co.uk/horn.htm
  17. ↑ 17.0 17.1 17.2 http://www.mouthpieceexpress.com/catalog/resources/media/caretips_french_horn.pdf
  18. ↑ 18.0 18.1 18.2 18.3 http://www.amromusic.com/french-horn-care
  19. ↑ http://www.wgpcollege.school.nz/site/whangaparoacollege/files//French%20Horn.pdf
  20. ↑ 20.0 20.1 http://www.dawkes.co.uk/french-horn-care.php
  21. ↑ http://www.beginband.com/horn.shtml

You may like

Retrieved from "https://kipkis.com/index.php?title=Play_the_French_Horn&oldid=324371"