Every year the University of Louisville puts on a clinic to help high school players around the state with the All-State etudes. Each instrument has its own instructor (usually the University professor for that instrument), but this week the UofL brass faculty are doing a tour of Japan, so I […]
horn technique
This time of year, most students (or at least most of my students) are beginning to work more diligently on their All-State music. While July and August are taken up with marching band camps and some intense after-school rehearsals, by the end of September most schools are doing at least […]
Practice Roadblocks? 2 Quick Fixes to Try First!
It looks like Julie Landsman is making the rounds to all sorts of different musical blogs, and her insights continue to be both interesting and energizing! A few weeks ago I posted about several different interviews that Julie Landsman has done – two different Horn Hangouts with Sarah Willis, an […]
Another [Great] Julie Landsman Interview!
If you’ve been in band or orchestra for any length of time, then the constant badgering from directors, sectional coaches, and private teachers to “practice your scales” is probably very familiar. If you’ve taught band, orchestra, sectionals, or private lessons, then the almost-automatic eye roll from students when you tell them […]
Scales, Caring, and Cursing
I think that it goes without saying that Julie Landsman has had an incredible and inspiring career. Julie was the principal horn of the Metropolitan Opera Orchestra for an incredible 25 years (1985-2010), a teacher at Julliard since 1989, and has long been a proponent of mind and body balance […]
Interview(s) with Julie Landsman
Too much pressure. Incorrect mouthpiece placement. Too much “smile” in the embouchure. Lousy right-hand position. Too little attention to intention. These are some of the bad habits I’ve had in my playing over the past 20+ years of playing the horn. These bad habits weren’t learned overnight, and moving past […]
Looking to Remove Bad Habits? Two Strategies You May Not ...
As I write this post, I was able to try out a new model horn several weeks ago from one of the best custom horn makers working today – Dan Vidican. Dan is fairly well-known for his excellent Lukas horn, and this new horn will likely become just as popular […]
New Custom Horn Model – Lukas/Pinc Horn
The Chicago Symphony is probably best known for their incredible brass section. The sound of the CSO brass section has been a legend for decades, and one of the core components of any great brass section is the French horn section! In this episode of Horn Hangouts, Sarah Willis sits […]