My first inspiration to research horn design came in my tenth grade year of
high school. My teacher then, George Curtis, knew very little about horn
design and encouraged me to research the various styles and equipment the American
hornists’ used. I started playing horns and quizzing people on the elmhurst
horn list to see if I could find the horn that had perfect intonation, even
registers, gorgeous sound, and build quality matched by no other horn in the
world. The truth was a horn such as that doesn’t exist. Luckilly different horn
builders have made horns of both wraps (defined by where the change
valve/fourth rotor is located on a horn), that come very close to a horn with perfect
intonation, even registers, gorgeous sound, and amazing build quality. The
following topics will define how horn builders have made horns of both wraps
almost perfect: the wrap of a horn, the design of a horn, why we play on our wraps,
and which wrap is ultimately better.
I have broken down the wrap of the horn into two categories, Kruspe and
Geyer/Knopf. There are many other types of horn wraps: Paxman Merewether
system, Thein, Alexander, Vienna, and Schmidt style wrap. They all offer a unique
incorporation of where the valves and tubing are located, but the paper will
focus on horns accepted by mainly American performers and builders.
Anton Horner, principal horn of the Philadelphia Orchestra, brought the
Kruspe style wrap to America from Germany in the early 19th century. The
layout of the horn has the change valve/thumb valve located closest to the player
with the 123 valves following. The bell throat tends to be very large towards
the end of the tail, while there is a more gradual taper coming from the first
branch into the bell tail. The cylindrical bore of the horn is typically
between .464" compared to .472" in Yamaha horns. The leadpipe has a fast taper
and is 3 to 5 inches shorter than a Geyer style wrap. The alloys used in most
Kruspe horns are Nickel Silver. This metal offers a larger brighter sound and
a spread dynamic. The dark sound quality that is usually associated with
Kruspe horns come from the gradual first branch into the Larger throated bell.
The most well known copy of the Kruspe horn is the Conn 8D, the most
popular since the demise of Kruspe horns. This is an exact copy of Arthur Berv’s
Kruspe Horner model. The Conn 8D is still in production after nearly 70 years
of use by professional players. The Conn factory has moved several times
resulting in quality control issues, which makes build quality of the newer horns
inconsistent. Yamaha Musical Instruments also has a newly revised Kruspe
Copy. The horn plays with ease in both the high and low registers, and at loud
and soft dynamics. Walter Lawson has made an original design that places the
change valve/fourth rotor over the 1 2 3 valves. This results in excellent
airflow through the entire valve section, and better weight transfer of the
tubing and vibration. James Patterson of Patterson Horn works also replicated a
Kruspe Horner model and made an original custom horn.
The Geyer/Knopf wrap originated in Germany and was brought here by
another famous horn builder, Carl Geyer. The layout or design of the geyer wrap has
a 3 to 5 inch longer leadpipe then the Kruspe wrap. The bell throat is
smaller with an open tail and first branch section. The thumb valve is located on
the far side of the 1 2 3 valves. The fifth and sixth branches are located
closer to the bell throat, resulting in even weight distribution. The
cylindrical bore is also .464 compared to .472 in Yamaha horns. Main characteristics
of the Geyer wrap are a less impeded airflow, brighter sound, and a larger
dynamic range. The Geyer/Knopf focuses on simplicity in design. A common
misconception in a Geyer wrap is stufiness. The stufiness is from poor build quality
and oblong tubing fixtures.
Simplicity in Design doesn’t neccessarily mean simple construction. Most
professional Geyer style players choose to play on instruments made by Carl
Geyer, Engelbert Schmid, Johannes Finke, Wes Hatch, Yamaha Musical Instruments,
Steve Lewis, and Rauch horns. These famous horn builders have all found key
steps into construction of their horns. Engelbert Schmid has combined
mathematics into horn building. By using the Laws of Science and Math a consistant
product has been produced. He takes general characteristics of player
attributes and finds a happy medium with what he can physically do with metal and
measurements of the horn. He is one of the few builders not to use tuning
slides. Carl Geyer used a piece of string as a measuring tool for all of the horns
personally built by him. Many Geyer wrap builders have experimented with
smaller valve sections and different guages of metal to get more response out of
their horns. With Old World craftsmanship and New World technology, Geyer
style horn builders have come closest to achieving a perfect product.
The design of a horn is simpler than the average player thinks. Kruspe
has predetermined basic dimensions of a horn and Knopf style wraps. Contour
between tubing size and gradualness of the taper feeds the airflow through the
entire horn. The smoother the inside of a horn the better airflow it has. The
leanest metal layout of a horn results in a wide smooth sound. An
appropriate amount of solder on all the joints creates no dead spots in a horn. Too
many misplaced brackets or joints create dead spots. A more consistant guage of
metal allows the most vibration to amplify through the horn bell. A stress
free construction provides the best amplification of sound. Reheated joints
bond to the metal and smooth out the tempermant in the sound.
Walt Lawson of Lawson Horns has experimented with horn bell construction
for nearly 30 years. His results in study have been that a heavier flare with
the same width throughout the start of the tail and the very tip of the bell
rim are the most resonant bells. Bill Sprague of The Horn Works in Omaha
recently let me try a vintage Conn 8D that has been resoldered and annealed (a
metal softening process to return the metal to its primitive state). The result
is an awesome dynamic register and amazing playability in all ranges (high
low, loud soft), of the horn. Most people choose to have custom work on their
horns to have a horn match build quality of some of the earlier horns; build
quality of the past was done by hand and much more skillfull than some automated
horns today.
Why we play our wraps is a very large topic with a lot of controversy. I
believe where you play, how you play, who you study/studied under, and what
your colleagues play are the major factors to what we play. Most students
develop general characteristics of the horn from their teachers. My current horn
teacher plays on a Larger Kruspe type instrument; every player in my studio
imulates this in some way. I have a friend that attends school in New Jersey
that is applying for grad school. His two choices are Northwestern University,
a Geyer School, or Mannes College of music, a larger Kruspe (8D) school. I
frequently ask him what he is going to play; he said the deciding factors are
where he ends up going to school and what his teacher feels is acceptable for
him as a player. What style you can make on a horn widely determines which end
of the spectrum you fall on. Most professional players and teachers
nationwide agree this in unison. I feel the sound a player is able to make on one
instrument is acceptable as long as that sound matches the people around them.
Do all Orchestra horns Generalize into one category of wrap or style of
playing? No they do not, as instrumentalist most sections must be prepared to
play Mahler and Mozart correctly on the same concert. For instance, the Las
Angeles Philharmonic plays on Conn 8D/Kruspe horns. The Chicago Symphony plays
on different Geyer wrap horns, lewis, geyer and Engelbert Schmid. The New
York Philharmonics, one of the greatest sections in the world play on Schmid
triples, Schmid doubles, or Conn 8d’s. The Minnesota Orchestra plays on Lawson
and Conn 8D horns. With a versatile range of music and limited restriction in
the instrument, most players determine what they feel the most comfortable on
and play from there.
Top soloist play on a variety of Geyer style horns and smaller kruspe
style horns. Bary Tuckwell created a smaller model of a Kruspe horner model for
Holton. Micheal Thompson plays on Geyer style Engelbert Schmid horns. Frank
Lloyd plays on a large throated Geyer model in nickel alloy. Tom Bacon, a
Yamaha artist, plays on both Kruspe and Geyer copies. All of the studio hornist
use an array of primarily Conn 8D horns and Yamaha Geyer model horns. The
American array of horn players is divided in what they play.
Which wrap is ultimately better? After three months of research and the
hospitality of many fine horn builders, I’ve come to the conclusion that you
are in control of what horn you play. First we have to determine individually
what qualities we enjoy about each horn, from this point we must apply it to
what style of horn player we want to be. Improve yourself and traits in your
instrument to be the best horn player you can be. Use this paper as a tool to
find that perfect horn!
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