I've faced some stiff opposition this list from employing Schmid's method of raising/lowering the horn a half step for pieces in E. Some people are trained to play in F or Bb only and learning new 'fingerings' is too much for some people to want to deal with, perhaps.
Yet, I've been able to perform some very difficult pieces in E by taking the horn up a half step and reading in E flat. Some consider that 'cheating', but honestly I never considered it to be, because it still takes a very good ear to think in a different key, to play in a different key that one isn't used to, and to think along a different harmonic series. Yet, the advantages outweigh the disadvantages. If you're not going to 'cheat', someone else will on a competition or audition, and WIN because they won't consider it cheating. I have no problem with people using Eb horns to play Eb pieces (there has been a very prominent soloist who won a very prestigious competition by playing Strauss 2 on a custom built high Eb horn), or playing a specific horn for E pieces (as I believe another very high profile performer has a specific horn for JUST the Weber Concertino). Also remember, Ifor James and Tuckwell recorded the Neruda and Zelenka Concertos on a high Bb horn - and I've played on one briefly and I don't see why they wouldn't have chosen that instrument. I guess if you want to get technical though, you really don't have to learn new fingerings for anything because you only have so many finger combinations, and it only comes down to mental transposition. Frankly, I say use whatever tools you have at your disposal. As far as a triple goes, judging by my descant, I probably wouldn't use the high side but maybe 10% of the time on mostly 1st parts, and maybe some 3rd parts, but that's it. But, those excerpts like Haydn and Bach and Beethoven 7 in auditions are always going to be called, and audition committees 9 times out of 10 will pick the person who didn't miss as long as they have a sound that still sounds like a horn. -William -----Original Message----- From: Luke Zyla <[email protected]> To: smh <[email protected]>; The Horn List <[email protected]> Sent: Fri, Aug 12, 2011 8:24 am Subject: Re: [Hornlist] Triple horns I am afraid that I must disagree with this statement. Some triple horns are very light nowadays. The compromises are very slight and they are much easier to play. Granted, the adjustment to fingerings is a challenge, but the advantages far outweigh the compromise. If I were a young buck nowadays on the audition trail, I would certainly enjoy the competitive edge that a high quality triple affords. That is why I coughed up the money for a triple for my son, the young buck on the audition trail. Luke Zyla, 2nd horn WV Symphony Orchestra www.wvsymphony.org On Aug 11, 2011, at 11:48 PM, Steve Haflich wrote: > Luke Zyla <[email protected]> wrote: > > Go for the triple. > >> Is my logic in thinking the Eb horn is useful because of the fact >> it is yet another key in the horn, useful for transpositions in >> some cases, sound? Or is it unfounded? This in addition to being a >> descant and all the benefits of having one? Essentially in a >> similar manner of the transpositions of the stop valve. > > I'm going to make a contrary observation. > > If you think the main purpose of a high Eb branch is to make > transposition easier, then you are not ready for a triple. A triple is > a heaveier horn than a double, has more inherent compromises, and is > therefore more difficult to play. Will this be your _only_ horn? Do > you want to make things more difficult for yourself? > > I'm not personally interested in debating these issues, but I urge you > to think about them for yourself. > _______________________________________________ > post: [email protected] > unsubscribe or set options at > https://pegasus.memphis.edu/cgi-bin/mailman/options/horn/lzyla%40suddenlink.net _______________________________________________ post: [email protected] unsubscribe or set options at https://pegasus.memphis.edu/cgi-bin/mailman/options/horn/valkhorn%40aol.com _______________________________________________ post: [email protected] unsubscribe or set options at https://pegasus.memphis.edu/cgi-bin/mailman/options/horn/archive%40jab.org
