This page is a partial (but regularly updated) list of some of the most valuable music and book resources for French horn players, brass players, and musicians in general. The links in each table take you to SheetMusicPlus, Amazon, or to Woodwind & Brasswind.com to purchase.
If you’re looking for basic exercises to improve tone, lips slurs, scales, or any other technique, head over to my own collection of horn exercises: scales, slurs, long tones, and more – all for free!
If you have any suggestions or thoughts, let me know either in the comments below or use my contact form.
Books
(Music, Peak Performance, Productivity, etc.)
Here you can find all sorts of music and horn-related books! Try searching for the following topics:
- Performance
- Horn Info
- Musicality
- Studies
- Productivity
- Health
- Entertainment
Selections with an asterisk (*) are highly recommended.
Put an asterisk in the search bar plus a topic to further refine your search!
| Title | Author | Topic | About | Buy |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| *Peak: Secrets From The New Science of Expertise | Anders Ericsson and Robert Pool | Performance | A book that offers practical ways to get better at any sort of skill – including making music. This book dispels the notion of prodigy or talent, and focuses on ways that anyone can get better at anything. | Amazon |
| Grit: The Power of Passion and Perseverance | Angela Duckworth | Performance | Similar to “Peak”, this book contains more stories of grit and perserverance rising above innate talent. | Amazon |
| *Lip Flexibilities for All Instruments | Bai Lin | Studies | These run the gamut from useful to crazy, and many can be modified and extended for horn to challenge your flexibility in different ways. | Amazon SheetMusicPlus |
| *How to Learn the Alexander Technique | Barbara Conable | Health | Just like “Relaxercise”, this book is an introduction to the famous Alexander Technique. | Amazon SheetMusicPlus |
| Tiny Habits: The Small Changes That Change Everything | B.J. Fogg | Productivity | If you’re having trouble getting new habits to “stick”, or getting rid of unproductive habits, B.J. Fogg takes a practical look at avoiding the trap of “willpower” and instead focusing on Behavior Design” | Amazon |
| Song and Wind | Brian Frederiksen | Entertainment | A biography of maybe the most famous brass musician of all time – Arnold Jacob. A fascinating look into his life, career, and pedagogy. | Amazon |
| *Deep Work | Cal Newport | Productivity | Look for a way to get hard work done? You need to embrace the idea of Deep Work. | |
| Digital Minimalism | Cal Newport | Productivity | Kind of a “part 2” to Deep Work, Cal looks at how to reduce digital “clutter” to spend your valuable time doing things that matter. | Amazon |
| A World Without Email | Cal Newport | Productivity | An interesting look at ways to improve efficiency of communication by removing email/messaging apps and replacing them with systems. | Amazon |
| So Good They Can’t Ignore You | Cal Newport | Productivity | A pushback against the advice to “follow your passion”. Makes a convincing case for being more pragmatic about how you should (and should not) choose a career. | Amazon |
| *Musical Calesthenics for Brass | Carmine Caruso | Studies | Caruso was one of the premier pedagogues relating to the physicality of playing a brass instrument. His “method” is great for learning the full-body coordination that playing a brass instrument involves. Use ONLY with a good teacher! | Amazon SheetMusicPlus |
| The Power of Habit | Charles Duhigg | Productivity | Another wonderful book on the power of developing small habits, and ways to incorporate them into your regular, daily routine. | Amazon |
| Productivity Project | Chris Bailey | Productivity | Kind of a “greatest hits” of various popular productivity methods. | Amazon |
| *Brass Playing is No Harder Than Deep Breathing | Claude Gordon | Horn Info | Covering some of the most important topics and concepts of brass playing in a fairly quick-reading 35 pages. Written by a trumpet player, this book is extremely useful in developing and refining technique. | Amazon SheetMusicPlus |
| *10% Happier | Dan Harris | Performance | While rolled my eyes at “mindfulness” for a long time, this book really opened my eyes to a much better way to be and live in the world. | Amazon |
| *The Talent Code | Daniel Coyle | Performance | A systematic look at how “talent” is really just the result of consistent and structured practice, and not genetics or luck. | |
| Getting Things Done | David Allen | Productivity | The book that started a lot of the “productivity pr0n” in the late 90’s and early 2000’s. While it is a bit outdated in a few ways, the overall concepts here are great if you’re looking for a way to stay more organized and effective. | |
| *Sound in Motion | David McGill | Musicality | Taking the teachings of Marcel Tabuteau one step farther to help anyone develop an intelligent vocabulary of musical thought. | Amazon |
| Relaxercise | David Zemach-Bersin | Health | Improve your posture and your playing. Based on the Feldenkrais Method. | Amazon |
| *Fight Your Fear and Win: Seven Skills for Performing Your Best Under Pressure | Don Greene | Performance | Don Greene, a sports psychiatrist gives anyone in a performance-related field actionable strategies to manage axiety and improve performance under pressure | Amazon |
| Performance Success: Performing Your Best Under Pressure | Don Greene | Performance | Another book by Don Greene, this time focused on professional musicians in performance situations. | Amazon |
| Audition Success | Don Greene | Performance | Another Don Greene book, this time focusing on his work with two professional musicians taking professional audtions. | Amazon |
| Collected Thoughts on Teaching and Learning, Creativity and Horn Performance | Douglass Hill | Horn Info | A collection of thoughts on a wide range of topics – beginning horn players, audition preparation, improvisation, composing, and more. | Amazon SheetMusicPlus |
| Repetitive Strain Injury | Dr. Emil Pascarelli | Health | Absolutely ESSENTIAL if you do repetitive work with your hands (typing, piano, guitar, etc.) | Amazon |
| *Blow Your OWN Horn! | Fergus McWilliam | Horn Info | Fergus McWilliam has been a member of the Berlin Philharmonic since 1985, and in this book he presents some of his most profound teachings, in his “Anti-method method”. | Amazon |
| *Standley Routine | Forrest Standley | Studies | Forrest Standley’s (in)famous warmup, with scales, arpeggios, harmonic series studies, and more. Great for improving knowledge of keys, finger dexterity, and endurance! | SheetMusicPlus |
| Pares Scales for French Horn | Gabriel Pares | Studies | A great resource for learning and reviewing scales in all sorts of different rhythms and patterns. A great resource to use as a part of your warm-up! | Amazon SheetMusicPlus |
| Talent is Overrated | Geoff Colvin | Performance | Another book similar to “Peak”, this book dispels both the “innate genious” and the “hard work” notion of top performers with a less-discussed third option. | Amazon |
| The Musician’s Way: A Guide To Practice, Performance, and Wellness | Gerald Klickstein | Performance | This book covers a lot of material intrensic to being a musician – from perforance anxiety to practice strategies and ways to avoid burnout and injury. | Amazon |
| Essentialism: The Disciplined Pursuit of Less | Greg Mckeown | Productivity | Figuring out what *not* to do is often just as important as figuring out what you should be doing. | Amazon |
| Performing Under Pressure: The Science of Doing Your Best When It Matters | Hendrie Weisinger | Performance | This book covers the different aspects of pressure and anxiety, how it can affect performance, and offers many strategies to deal with pressure – both short and long term. | Amazon |
| Atomic Habits | James Clear | Productivity | The mind is smart, but the brain is dumb. Training good habits is easy if you know how to “hack” your brain – this book tells you how. | Amazon |
| A Devil to Play | Jasper Rees | Entertainment | Not a horn method book, per se, but an amusing read about one man’s quest to master the horn in a year! | Amazon |
| Horn Technique: A New Approach To An Old Instrument | Jeffery Agrell | Horn Info | A new take on horn playing and pedagogy, from natural horn to the modern-day instrument. | Amazon |
| Embouchure Builder for French Horn | Joesph Singer | Studies | A great book with exercises to systemattically improve embouchure strength and control. Only recommended for intermediate to advanced players, and under the guidance of a good teacher! | Amazon SheetMusicPlus |
| Spark: The Revolutionary New Science of Exercise and the Brain | John Ratey | Health | Not only is exercise good for your body (obviously), there’s also a lot of science that shows that it is also good for your brain. Not only improving your mood, but also increasing your capacity to learn. | Amazon |
| *The Practice of Practice: How To Boost Your Musical Skills | Jonathan Harnum | Performance | One of the most commonly lacking skills in musicians of all levels is knowning how to practice efficiently and effectively | Amazon |
| Marcel Tabuteau: How Do You Expect to Play the Oboe If You Can’t Peel A Mushroom? | Laila Storch | Entertainment | A look at the life and career of oboist Tabuteau. One of the most musical players of any instrument, and an influential figure in 20th century musical pedagogy. | Amazon |
| Why We Sleep | Matthew Walker | Health | Sleep is important, but you may not realize just *how* important it is. Not only for your day-to-day function, but also long term health and mental/physical performance. | Amazon |
| *Daily Drills and Technical Studies for Trombone | Max Schlossberg | Studies | While written for trombone, this book has some excellent flexibility, harmonic, and scale exercises. Plus, it’s great for keeping your bass clef reading in shape! | Amazon SheetMusicPlus |
| Mastery of the French Horn | Michael Hoeltzel | Horn Info | Another great resource for any horn player. Lots of (unique) warm-ups, thoughts on expression and technique, and a nice resource of French horn cadenzas to boot! | Amazon SheetMusicPlus |
| *Flow: The Psychology of Optimal Experience | Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi | Performance | Maybe one of the most influential books in the realm of peak performance. This book introduced the idea of a “flow state”, how to get into one, and why they are so fulfilling. | Amazon |
| Four Thousand Weeks: Time Management for Mortals | Oliver Burkeman | Productivity | An interesting look at time management, not by trying to “get everything done”, but by embracing the limited time we all have and how to make the best, most meaningful use of it. | Amazon |
| Outlive | Peter Attia | Health | A look at some of the latest science and research on how to extend your lifespan *and* your healthspan. Includes both actionable advice as well as the science behind why it works (or why it might not). | Amazon |
| *The Art of French Horn Playing | Phillip Farkas | Horn Info | The original “Bible” for French horn players. Full of useful advice about playing, equipment, and musicality. | Amazon SheetMusicPlus WWBW |
| The Art of Musicianship | Phillip Farkas | Musicality | A treatise on the skill, knowledge, and sensitivity to perform music of all genres in an artistic and professional manner. | Amazon |
| The Art of Brass Playing | Phillip Farkas | Horn Info | An in-depth look at the function and purpose of the brass player’s embouchure. | Amazon |
| Good Vibrations: Masterclasses for Brass Players | Randy Gardner | Horn Info | A look into the fundamentals of good brass playing, from tone, articulation, air, and embouchure. Great for all levels – beginner to professional! | Amazon |
| Bullet Journal Method | Ryder Carroll | Productivity | The Bullet Journal is an interesting, analog way to combine a journal with all sorts of other productivity tools. | Amazon |
| Ultralearning: Master Hard Skills, Outsmart the Competition, and Accelerate Your Career | Scott Young | Productivity | Scott famously went through the entire 4-year MIT computer science curriculum in one year – teaching himself. This book covers many different learning strategies – many of which are applicable to musicians. | Amazon |
| *The Dip: A Little Book That Teachers You When To Quit (and When to Stick) | Seth Godin | Performance | Quitting is often looked down upon, but sometimes quitting is the right thing to do. Conversely, even people with high-level skills encounter moments of doubt (the “dip”). Know when to quit and when to push through is maybe the most important skill of all. | Amazon |
| *The Practice: Shipping Creative Work | Seth Godin | Performance | While it’s tempting to wait for perfection before presenting anything for public consumption, that is no way to move forward. | Amazon |
| The Hungry Brain | Stephan J. Guyenet | Health | A scientific look at why eating well is hard. | Amazon |
| Do Hard Things | Steve Magness | Performance | Why toughness is not the same as resilience, and how to learn to embrace being uncomfortable to improve. | Amazon |
| The Inner Game of Music | Timothy Gallwey | Performance | Based on the Inner Game of Tennis by Timothy Gallwey, this applies many of the same concepts to music. A great introduction to self-analysis for performers. | Amazon |
| The Horn Handbook | Verne Reynolds | Horn Info | Lots of information from Verne Reynolds, a long-time horn professor at Eastman, as well as Cinncinnati and Indiana University | Amazon |
| Technical Studies for Solving Special Problems on the Horn | William Brophy | Studies | Some nice exercises and explanations for fixing common problem areas among all levels of horn player. Things like low and high register, stopped horn, multiple tonguing, and more! | Amazon SheetMusicPlus |
French Horn Music
If you’re looking for French horn music, you’ll find it here! This music chart is sorted by type. It’s got:
- Etude
- Study
- Excerpts
- Solo
- Duet
- Trio
- Quartet
It’s also sorted by approximate difficulty level:
- Beginner
- Intermediate
- Adv Intermediate
- Advanced
You can also search for recommended items for my own personal students, marked with an asterisk (*), search for composers or specific pieces, and combine search parameters.
Selections with an asterisk (*) are highly recommended.
Put an asterisk in the search bar plus a topic to further refine your search!
| Title | Composer/Arranger | Type | Difficulty | Description | Buy |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| *A First Book of Etudes for French Horn | Arthur Goldstein | Etude | Beginner | Simple etudes and tunes in a great range for any beginning horn player | Amazon SheetMusicPlus |
| *A Second Book of Etudes for French Horn | Arthur Goldstein | Etude | Beginner | More complicated rhythms and an expanded range make this book great for a bit more challenge. | Amazon SheetMusicPlus |
| *A First Book of Exercises for French Horn | Arthur Goldstein | Etude | Beginner | A great companion to the First Etude books by Goldstein. These focus on establishing good basic playing techniques. | Amazon SheetMusicPlus |
| First Book of Practical Studies for French Horn | Robert Getchell | Etude | Beginner | A great companion to any beginning band book. In a much better range for a beginning horn player | Amazon SheetMusicPlus |
| Rubank Elementary Method | Rubank | Etude | Beginner | Basically a beginning band method book. If you have a different one from your band program, don’t worry about this book | SheetMusicPlus WWBW |
| Pottag-Hovey Method for French Horn, Book 1 | Pottag/Hovey | Etude | Beginner | A classic, and still a nice option for young players. Covers lots of fundamentals of playing and music. | SheetMusicPlus |
| Canadian Brass: Easy Horn Solos | Canadian Brass | Solo | Beginner | A collection of folk and classical tunes arranged for horn and piano. Also includes companion audio with accompaniments to practice (or perform) with. | SheetMusicPlus |
| *The Horn Collection – Easy to Intermediate Level | Schirmer | Solo | Beginner | A collection of several classical tunes arranged for horn and piano. These are easy to intermediate level. | Amazon SheetMusicPlus WWBW |
| *A First Book of Solos for French Horn | Arthur Goldstein | Solo | Beginner | Great for young students. Starts VERY easy, and moves logically to more difficult music. | SheetMusicPlus |
| Going Solo: Horn | Richard Bissel and Arthur Campbell | Solo | Beginner | Original pieces and arrangements. Good for 2nd year players. | SheetMusicPlus |
| *First Solos for the Horn Player | Mason Jones | Solo | Beginner | A great collection of first solos for younger players. A wonderful (easier) companion to the Solos for the Horn Player book. | SheetMusicPlus |
| Favorite Movie Themes! | Various | Solo | Beginner | A collection of themes from some popular movies. A bit more challenging than the Harry Potter book. | SheetMusicPlus |
| Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone: Selected Themes from the Motion Picture | Victor Lopez | Solo | Beginner | A collection of themes from the first Harry Potter movie. These can be played by 1, 2, or 3 horns. | SheetMusicPlus |
| Classical Duets for All | Arr. William Ryden | Duet | Beginner | These duets come in all keys, so they can be played by any two instruments. | SheetMusicPlus |
| Second Book of Practical Studies for French Horn | Robert Getchell | Etude | Intermediate | A nice step-up in difficulty from Getchell’s first book. Some definite musical challenges with progressive technical challenges. | SheetMusicPlus |
| Melodious Studies for French Horn | Erwin Miersch | Etude | Intermediate | These start easy, but progress to ever more challenging, using a wide variety of key and time signatures. There are some nice duets found in this book as well. | Amazon SheetMusicPlus |
| Legato Etudes for French Horn | John Shoemaker | Etude | Intermediate | A collection of etudes focusing on lyrical and expressive playing, with additional attention given to dynamics, mid/low register, and bass clef reading. | Amazon SheetMusicPlus |
| *Kopprasch 60 Selected Studies for Horn – Book 1 | Kopprasch | Etude | Intermediate | A classic horn etude book for just about any level of player. Lots of audition materials (All-State, etc.) come from this book. | Amazon SheetMusicPlus WWBW |
| Pottag-Hovey Method for French Horn, Book 2 | Pottag/Hovey | Etude | Intermediate | A great follow-up to the Pottag/Hovey Book 1. This introduces more advanced styles and concepts like transposition. | SheetMusicPlus |
| *Preparatory Melodies to Solo Work (from Schantl) | Max Pottag | Etude | Intermediate | A collection of etudes with a wide variety of styles, keys, and musical challenges. Great for all players! | Amazon SheetMusicPlus WWBW |
| 335 Selected Melodius Progressive and Technical Studies for Horn: Book 1 | Max Pottag and Albert Andraud | Etude | Intermediate | A collection of many different etudes and a few solos as well. If you can only get one etude book, this is probably the most well-rounded, and will keep you busy for a long time! | Amazon SheetMusicPlus |
| *200 Studies in 6 Books #1: 70 Very Easy and Easy Studies | Maxime Alphonse | Etude | Intermediate | Don’t let the “Very Easy to Easy” fool you, these aren’t studies for the rank beginner. They do challenge you in a wide variety of ways, and the author provides little notes about common difficulties or problems. | SheetMusicPlus |
| *200 Studies in 6 Books #2: 40 Easy Studies | Maxime Alphonse | Etude | Intermediate | A continuation of book 1, these are a bit more challenging. Great for challenging high school and college level players. | SheetMusicPlus |
| Technical Studies for Solving Special Problems on the Horn | William Brophy | Study | Intermediate | Some nice exercises and explanations for fixing common problem areas among all levels of horn player. Things like low and high register, stopped horn, multiple tonguing, and more! | Amazon SheetMusicPlus |
| *Lip Flexibilities for All Instruments | Bai Lin | Study | Intermediate | These run the gamut from useful to crazy, and many can be modified and extended for horn to challenge your flexibility in different ways. | Amazon SheetMusicPlus |
| *Musical Calesthenics for Brass | Carmine Caruso | Study | Intermediate | Caruso was one of the premier pedagogues relating to the physicality of playing a brass instrument. His “method” is great for learning the full-body coordination that playing a brass instrument involves. Use ONLY with a good teacher! | Amazon SheetMusicPlus |
| Pares Scales for French Horn | Gabriel Pares | Study | Intermediate | A great resource for learning and reviewing scales in all sorts of different rhythms and patterns. A great resource to use as a part of your warm-up! | Amazon SheetMusicPlus |
| Lord of the Rings Instrumental Solos | Howard Shore | Solo | Intermediate | Fun music with tunes from Lord of the Rings! | SheetMusicPlus |
| Star Wars I-VI Instrumental Solos | John Williams | Solo | Intermediate | Some fun music featuring some of the most popular tunes from the first 6 Star Wars movies! | SheetMusicPlus |
| Solos for the Horn Player | Mason Jones | Solo | Intermediate | A great resource for Solo and Ensemble and other auditions/solo performance opportunities! With a wide range of styles and difficulties! | Amazon SheetMusicPlus WWBW |
| Four Horn Concertos and Concert Rondo | Mozart | Solo | Intermediate | This is an inexpensive Mozart edition, and not that great. If you want all 4 concertos for a reasonable price, look at the Tuckwell Mozart edition below | SheetMusicPlus WWBW |
| Concerto 1 (K415/514) Urtext | Mozart | Solo | Intermediate | If you want the ultimate in authentic, you want an urtext edition. These are more expensive, but if you’re serious about your Mozart – this is where you should start! There are two well-respected urtext publishers, Barenreiter and G. Henle Verlag. | Henle-Verlag SheetMusicPlus Barenreiter SheetMusicPlus |
| Concerto 2 (K417) Urtext | Mozart | Solo | Intermediate | An urtext edition of the second concerto. | Henle-Verlag SheetMusicPlus Barenreiter SheetMusicPlus |
| Concerto 3 (K447) | Mozart | Solo | Intermediate | An urtext edition of the third concerto. | Henle-Verlag SheetMusicPlus Barenreiter SheetMusicPlus |
| Concerto 4 (K495) | Mozart | Solo | Intermediate | An urtext edition of the fourth concerto. | Henle-Verlag SheetMusicPlus Barenreiter SheetMusicPlus |
| Four Horn Concerts, Concert Rondo, and Fragments | Mozart/ed. Tuckwell | Solo | Intermediate | This is a pretty good edition of all 4 concertos, plus the (newer edition) Concert Rondo, and K. 412 Rondo, as well as a fragment of Mozart’s Horn Concerto in E (unfinished). | SheetMusicPlus |
| Canadian Brass: Intermediate to Advanced Horn Solos | Canadian Brass | Solo | Intermediate | A similar collection to the Canadian Brass Easy solos (with piano part and digital accompaniments), but a bit more challenging. | SheetMusicPlus |
| The Horn Collection – Intermediate Level | Schirmer | Solo | Intermediate | A collection of 12 pieces by 12 different composers. Overall, a bit easier than the Mason Jones book (above), but a great resource all levels of player! | Amazon SheetMusicPlus WWBW |
| Eighteen Sacred and Spiritual Solos | Daniel Kelley | Solo | Intermediate | Great if you want to play in churches, or need some shorter filler pieces for a recital. Especially great for a younger player’s recital. | SheetMusicPlus |
| Disney Move Hits | Various | Solo | Intermediate | Just like the Star Wars book, but with Disney tunes! | SheetMusicPlus |
| Baroque Suite | Various | Trio | Intermediate | For three horns | SheetMusicPlus |
| 40 Characteristic Etudes for French Horn | Henri Kling | Etude | Adv Intermediate | More challenging than Kopprasch, but a slightly different flavor than Gallay or Maxime Alphonse. | SheetMusicPlus |
| *12 Characteristic Studies for 2nd Horn | Jacques Francois Gallay | Etude | Adv Intermediate | Covering lots of idioms from the Classical and Romantic 2nd horn parts, this book requires both musicality and technique! | SheetMusicPlus |
| *335 Selected Melodius Progressive and Technical Studies for Horn: Book 2 | Max Pottag and Albert Andraud | Etude | Adv Intermediate | A continuation of book 1. Lots of different etudes by a variety of different composers – these can keep you busy for a long while! | SheetMusicPlus |
| *200 Studies in 6 Books for Horn #3: Average Difficulty | Maxime Alphonse | Etude | Adv Intermediate | A continuation of books #1 and #2. Even more challenging in terms of endurance, range, rhythm, and musical demands. | SheetMusicPlus |
| Rangesongs for Horn | French, Rose | Etude | Adv Intermediate | A collection of etudes designed to expand the range up and down. Each etude has a “target note” – high range goes from 3rd space C to C above the staff, while low range goes to pedal G. | SheetMusicPlus |
| Solo Training for Horn | Boldin, James | Etude | Adv Intermediate | A collection of etudes designed to work on common challenges in solo repertoire. This etude collection takes those tricky licks and expands them into full etudes. | SheetMusicPlus |
| Anthology of French Horn Music | Richard Moore and Eugene Ettore | Excerpts | Adv Intermediate | Not really an etude book, but a collection of orchestral excerpts for horn. While there are more complete collections out there, this a good start and covers lots of the basics. | SheetMusicPlus |
| Standley Routine | Forrest Standley | Study | Adv Intermediate | Forrest Standley’s (in)famous warmup, with scales, arpeggios, harmonic series studies, and more. Great for improving knowledge of keys, finger dexterity, and endurance! | SheetMusicPlus |
| Embouchure Builder for French Horn | Joesph Singer | Study | Adv Intermediate | A great book with exercises to systemattically improve embouchure strength and control. Only recommended for intermediate to advanced players, and under the guidance of a good teacher! | Amazon SheetMusicPlus |
| *Daily Drills and Technical Studies for Trombone | Max Schlossberg | Study | Adv Intermediate | While written for trombone, this book has some excellent flexibility, harmonic, and scale exercises. Plus, it’s great for keeping your bass clef reading in shape! | Amazon SheetMusicPlus |
| Alla Caccia | Abbott, Alan | Solo | Adv Intermediate | Short and moderately technical, this piece is a great little tune to end a recital with! | SheetMusicPlus – Weiberger Ed. |
| Selected Songs (Vol. 1) | Arr. Thomas Bacon | Solo | Adv Intermediate | A collection of short vocal works arranged for horn and piano. | SheetMusicPlus |
| 6 Cello Suites for Horn | Bach, JS/arr Wendell Hoss | Solo | Adv Intermediate | Great arrangements of some of the best music ever written. These work a challenging register for most horn players. Extremely rewarding for both technique and musicality. | SheetMusicPlus |
| Three Hymn Tune Settings | Basler, Paul | Solo | Adv Intermediate | Nice and playable settings of “Abide With Me”, “Amazing Grace”, and “Shall We Gather At The River”. | SheetMusicPlus |
| Creative Carols for Horn | Hogan, Ed | Solo | Adv Intermediate | 10 Christmas carols with unique and fun arrangements! Perfect for church services, holiday recitals, or just some fun music for the holiday season! | SheetMusicPlus |
| Horn Sonata Op. 17 | Beethoven | Solo | Adv Intermediate | A great sonata for horn and piano by Beethoven. Challenging for the horn player, but this piece has an especially fiendish piano part as well! | SheetMusic Plus – Henle Ed. WWBW – Tuckwell Ed. |
| Two Sonatas for French Horn | Cherubini, Luigi | Solo | Adv Intermediate | Two short 1-movement sonatas. | SheetMusicPlus – Schirmer Ed. SheetMusicPlus – International Ed. |
| Pavane Variee | Damase, Jean-Michel | Solo | Adv Intermediate | SheetMusic | |
| Berceuse | Damase, Jean-Michel | Solo | Adv Intermediate | SheetMusicPlus | |
| Sonata in E-flat major Op. 28 | Danzi, Franz | Solo | Adv Intermediate | SheetMusicPlus – Masters Ed. SheetMusicPlus – Hofmeister Ed. |
|
| Villanelle | Dukas, Paul | Solo | Adv Intermediate | A solo with lots of different sections. Featuring parts played on natural horn, stopped horn, echo horn, and muted horn. | SheetMusicPlus – Durand Ed. SheetMusicPlus – Henle Ed. SheetMusicPlus – International Ed. |
| Reveries Op. 24 | Glazunov, Alexander | Solo | Adv Intermediate | Another great lyrical piece. | SheetMusicPlus -Belaiff Ed. SheetMusicPlus – Wiltshire Ed. |
| Romance Op. 35 No. 6 | Gliere, Rheinhold | Solo | Adv Intermediate | One of a collection of short works for horn and piano by Gliere. These make great “filler” pieces for recitals or concerts. | SheetMusicPlus – Internation Ed. |
| Valse Triste Op. 35 No. 7 | Gliere, Rheinhold | Solo | Adv Intermediate | Another short piece by Gliere. Great filler material. | SheetMusicPlus – Internation Ed. |
| Nocturne Op. 35 No. 10 | Gliere, Rheinhold | Solo | Adv Intermediate | Another short piece by Gliere. Great filler material. | SheetMusicPlus – International Ed. |
| Intermezzo Op. 35 No. 11 | Gliere, Rheinhold | Solo | Adv Intermediate | Another short piece by Gliere. Great filler material. | SheetMusicPlus – International Ed. |
| Canto Serioso | Nielsen, Carl | Solo | Adv Intermediate | Not too challenging, provided you can play a pedal G. | SheetMusicPlus |
| Morceau de Concert Op. 94 | Saint-Saens, Camille | Solo | Adv Intermediate | Another classical entry into the solo repertoire. This theme-and-variation piece has a lot of variety and is approachable for lots of students. It even has a couple of high Cs at the end. | SheetMusicPlus – Belwin Ed. SheetMusicPlus – Durand Ed. SheetMusicPlus – Internation Ed. |
| Romance Op. 36 | Saint-Saens, Camille | Solo | Adv Intermediate | An easy piece that makes a nice pairing with a more flashy piece. | SheetMusicPlus – Durand Ed. SheetMusicPlus – Henle Ed. |
| *The Horn Collection – Intermediate to Advanced Level | Schirmer | Solo | Adv Intermediate | A collection of short works or movements of larger works for an advanced high school or college undergraduate horn player. A nice way to find a wide variety of more mature repertoire. | Amazon SheetMusicPlus WWBW |
| Concert and Contest Collection for French Horn | Voxman | Solo | Adv Intermediate | A great balance of more approachable solos in the beginning, and more challenging toward the end of the book. | SheetMusicPlus |
| Nocturno Op. 7 | Strauss, Franz | Solo | Adv Intermediate | A very nice Romantic-period piece for horn and piano. Very melodic and full of musical expression! | SheetMusicPlus – Universal Ed. |
| Horn Concerto Op. 8 | Strauss, Franz | Solo | Adv Intermediate | Fairly approachable, although the ending of the first and third movements are quite technical. | SheetMusicPlus – Schirmer Ed. WWBW – Tuckwell Ed. |
| Horn Concerto #1, Op. 11 in E-flat Major | Strauss, Richard | Solo | Adv Intermediate | One of the most popular horn concertos ever written. A great introdution to Strauss, Romantic literature, and solo playing! | SheetMusicPlus – International Ed. SheetMusicPlus – Schirmer Ed. |
| Hunter’s Moon | Vinter, Gilbert | Solo | Adv Intermediate | A great, fun piece for horn and piano. Not too hard, but has some great stopped-horn effects! | SheetMusicPlus – Boosey & Hawkes Ed. |
| Four Easy Pieces | Wilder, Alec | Solo | Adv Intermediate | Jazzy, but not too difficult. A nice change of pace for a younger horn player looking for something different. | SheetMusicPlus – Margun Ed. |
| The Essential Horn | Debussy, arr.Machala | Solo | Adv Intermediate | A collection of 4 Debussy pieces. Great musical challenge for more advanced players. | SheetMusicPlus |
| 100 Duets, Book 1 | Franz, Oscar | Duet | Adv Intermediate | This volume contains 53 duets. They start off relatively simple, but get progressively more challenging | SheetMusicPlus |
| 40 Preludes Op. 27 | Jacques Francois Gallay | Etude | Advanced | This collection features both measured and unmeasured preludes, to work not only technique, but also phrasing. | SheetMusicPlus |
| 21 Characteristic Etudes for High Horn Playing | Martin Hackleman | Etude | Advanced | These etudes focus on the upper register – high C and beyond – in a very lyrical and musical way. | SheetMusicPlus |
| 34 Characteristic Etudes for Low Horn Playing | Martin Hackleman | Etude | Advanced | Similar to the high horn etudes, except focusing on the lower register. Most include bass clef. | SheetMusicPlus |
| 200 Studies in 6 Books for Horn #4: Difficult Etudes | Maxime Alphonse | Etude | Advanced | Even more challenges than Book #3. | SheetMusicPlus |
| 201 Studies in 6 Books for Horn #5: Very Difficult Etudes | Maxime Alphonse | Etude | Advanced | Even more challenges than Book #4. | SheetMusicPlus |
| 202 Studies in 6 Books for Horn #6: Virtuosic Etudes | Maxime Alphonse | Etude | Advanced | Even more challenges than Book #5. Tres ridiculous. | SheetMusicPlus |
| 48 Etudes for French Horn | Verne Reynolds | Etude | Advanced | Written in a very contemporary style. Focus on each interval from the half step to the octave, as well as a wide variety of other horn skils (stopped horn, double tonguing, etc.). | SheetMusicPlus SheetMusicPlus |
| Blues and Variations for Monk | Amram, David | Solo | Advanced | For horn alone. In memory of Thelonious Monk. Jazzy, with extended techniques (growl, tapping the bell like a cymbal, etc). | SheetMusicPlus |
| Fantasy & Variations on the Carnival of Venice | Arban, Jean-Baptiste/Arr. Eric Ruske | Solo | Advanced | A transcription and variation on the classic work for solo cornet. | SheetMusicPlus |
| Serenade for Horn and Piano | Basler, Paul | Solo | Advanced | A wonderful, energetic work for horn and piano. | RM Williams |
| Elegia for Natural horn | Baumann, Hermann | Solo | Advanced | For horn alone. Meant to be played on an F natural horn (without valves). Makes extensive use of right hand. | SheetMusicPlus |
| The Glass Bead Game: Concerto for horn | Beckel, James | Solo | Advanced | Based (loosely) on the Herman Hesse novel of the same name. | SheetMusicPlus |
| En Foret | Bozza, Eugene | Solo | Advanced | A very virtuosic piece, encompassing the many moods of the forest – from brash to meditative. | SheetMusicPlus – Alphonse Leduc Ed. |
| Pieces for Horn Solo | Buyanovsky, Vitaly | Solo | Advanced | Five pieces for horn alone. Espana is probably the most popular of the 5, but they are all very interesting and approachable solo horn works. | Hickeys |
| Sonata for Horn and Piano | Ewazen, Eric | Solo | Advanced | SheetMusicPlus | |
| Concerto for Horn | Ewazen, Eric | Solo | Advanced | SheetMusicPlus | |
| Autumn Rondo | Ewazen, Eric | Solo | Advanced | A short, but energetic piece. Great to close out a recital for an energetic audience! | SheetMusicPlus |
| Concerto in B-flat major Op. 91 | Gliere, Rheinhold | Solo | Advanced | Essentialy the “Tchaikovsky Violin Concerto” for horn. Long, taxing, and with an incredible cadenza (by premier performer Valery Polekh). | SheetMusicPlus – International Ed. |
| Concerto for Horn in D major #1 | Haydn, F. J. | Solo | Advanced | SheetMusicPlus – Kalmus Ed. | |
| Concerto for Horn in D major #2 | Haydn, F. J. | Solo | Advanced | SheetMusicPlus – Kalmus Ed. | |
| Sonata for Horn and Piano | Heiden, Bernhard | Solo | Advanced | Modern, but tonal. Fun to play (and listen to) but shifting time signatures in the 3rd movement require work for ensemble. | SheetMusicPlus |
| Jazz Set for Solo Horn | Hill, Douglas | Solo | Advanced | For horn alone. With quite a few extended techniques (half-valve, ghost tones, etc.) to capture an improvisatory style. | SheetMusicPlus |
| Sonata for Horn and Piano | Hindemith, Paul | Solo | Advanced | Disjunct (but melodic) intervals and complicated rhythms make this a great challenging introduction in the 20th century solo horn repertoire. | SheetMusicPlus – Schott Ed. |
| Sonata for Alto Horn and Piano | Hindemith, Paul | Solo | Advanced | Written for the Eb Alto (sometimes called Tenor) horn. | SheetMusicPlus – Schott Ed. |
| Horn Concerto | Hindemith, Paul | Solo | Advanced | SheetMusicPlus | |
| Concerto for Horn and Strings | Jacob, Gordon | Solo | Advanced | An early 20th century horn concerto. Flashy and musical. | SheetMusicPlus – Schirmer Ed. |
| Introduction and Rondo | Kalliwoda, Johann | Solo | Advanced | SheetMusicPlus | |
| Intrada | Ketting, Otto | Solo | Advanced | For horn alone (as in, no piano). | SheetMusicPlus – Donemus Ed. |
| Scherzo Brillante Op. 96 | Koetsier, Jan | Solo | Advanced | Short, but challenging. | SheetMusicPlus |
| Laudatio | Krol, Berhand | Solo | Advanced | For horn alone (as in, no piano). | SheetMusicPlus – Simrock Ed. |
| Scherzo Concertante | Nelhybel, Vaclav | Solo | Advanced | Not technically challenging, but Nelhybel’s typical rhythmic style makes counting and ensemble a challenge. | SheetMusicPlus |
| Bagatelle | Neuling, Hermann | Solo | Advanced | A challenging piece for low horn and piano | JW Pepper |
| Parable for Solo Horn | Persichetti, Vincent | Solo | Advanced | Another for horn alone. | SheetMusicPlus – Presser Ed. |
| Air de Chasse | Piantoni, Louis | Solo | Advanced | SheetMusicPlus | |
| Elegie for Horn and Piano | Poulenc, Francis | Solo | Advanced | Written in memory of the great horn player Dennis Brain. | SheetMusicPlus |
| Sonata in E-flat major Op. 178 | Rheinberger, Joseph | Solo | Advanced | A late Romantic-period sonata. Very nice writing for both the horn and piano, although the 3 movements have very little rests for the horn. | SheetMusicPlus – Schott Ed. |
| Sonata in F major Op. 34 | Ries, Ferdinand | Solo | Advanced | Late Classical – similar in some respects to the Beethoven horn sonata. | SheetMusicPlus – Schott Ed. |
| Concerto in E-flat major (IM 1977) | Rosetti, F. Antonio | Solo | Advanced | A contemporary of Mozart. These concertos make great Classical-era concertos after Mozart. | SheetMusicPlus – International Ed. |
| Concerto in E-flat major (IM 3084) | Rosetti, F. Antonio | Solo | Advanced | SheetMusicPlus – International Ed. | |
| Concerto in D minor (HL 48018125) | Rosetti, F. Antonio | Solo | Advanced | Probably the most famous of Rosetti’s horn concertos. | SheetMusicPlus – Simrock Ed. |
| Adagio and Allegro Op. 70 | Schumann, Robert | Solo | Advanced | One of the first pieces written for the valved horn. A test of musicality, technique, and endurance! | SheetMusicPlus – Henle Ed. SheetMusicPlus – Tuckwell Ed. WWBW – Tuckwell Ed. |
| Horn Concerto #2 in E-flat major | Strauss, Richard | Solo | Advanced | Written late in life, this concerto is both musically and physically taxing. Very modern harmonically, but very pleasing and melodic. | SheetMusicPlus – Boosey & Hawkes Ed. |
| Andante, Op. posth | Strauss, Richard | Solo | Advanced | Composed for his parent’s wedding anniversary it was unpublished until after Richard’s death. | SheetMusicPlus – Boosey & Hawkes Ed. |
| Concerto in D | Telemann, Georg Philipp | Solo | Advanced | A nice introduction to Baroque solo literature, this piece doesn’t go up too high (only a high B)! | SheetMusicPlus – Tuckwell Ed. |
| Jazz Café | Various/ed. Thomas Bacon | Solo | Advanced | Jazz isn’t exactly a comfortable style for many horn players, but this compilation can help fix that problem! | SheetMusicPlus |
| Five Love Songs | Wilder, Alec | Solo | Advanced | Written for horn and chamber orchestra, these are short but great to sandwich in between more “serious” recital works. | SheetMusicPlus – IWP Ed. |
| Suite for Horn and Piano | Wilder, Alec | Solo | Advanced | A melding of jazz and classical harmonies and styles is evident in this 5-movement work for horn and piano. | SheetMusicPlus – Margun Ed. |
| Sonata No. 1 for Horn and Piano | Wilder, Alec | Solo | Advanced | Three movements, and with Alec Wilder’s typicall jazz influence. | SheetMusicPlus – Margun Ed. |
| Sonata No. 2 for Horn and Piano | Wilder, Alec | Solo | Advanced | Another jazzy/classical piece by Alec Wilder. | SheetMusicPlus -Margun Ed. |
| Sonata No. 3 for Horn and Piano | Wilder, Alec | Solo | Advanced | Another sonata by Alec Wilder with his characteristic jazzy voice. | SheetMusicPlus – Margun Ed. |
| Concerto for Horn and Orchestra | Williams, John | Solo | Advanced | Although written by the famed film composer, this is NOT the same as his movie music. Very challenging. | SheetMusicPlus – Hal Leonard Ed. |
| Twenty Duos for Horns in Different Keys | Dauprat, Louis | Duet | Advanced | Each duet part is in a different transposition. A great way to practice transpositions and have some fun at the same time! | SheetMusicPlus |
| Tis the Season Vol. 2 | Schaeffer, Don | Duet | Intermediate | Wonderful, short Christmas duets for two horns. | SheetMusicPlus |
| 15 Classical Transcriptions | Kling, Henry | Duet | Advanced | 15 duets of famous classical works from opera, symphonies, and chamber works. | SheetMusicPlus |
| Eight Duets | Kopprasch | Duet | Advanced | Challenging duets, but these would be great for a two-horn recital. | SheetMusicPlus |
| Twenty Concertante Duets | Punto, Giovanni | Duet | Advanced | Challenging for both first and second horn. | SheetMusicPlus – Masters Ed. |
| Six Duets for Horn and Cello | Wilder, Alec | Duet | Advanced | SheetMusicPlus – Margun Ed. | |
| 12 Duets for Horn and Tuba | Wilder, Alec | Duet | Advanced | SheetMusicPlus – Margun Ed. | |
| Trio in E-flat major Op. 40 | Brahms, Johannes | Trio | Advanced | For violin, horn and piano. A great work for all three instruments. | SheetMusicPlus – International Ed. SheetMusicPlus – Barenreiter Ed. |
| Trio | Damase, Jean-Michel | Trio | Advanced | Trio for horn, oboe, and piano. | SheetMusicPlus |
| Trio for Horn, Violin, and Piano | Ewazen, Eric | Trio | Advanced | SheetMusicPlus | |
| Ballade, Pastorale, and Dance | Ewazen, Eric | Trio | Advanced | For horn, flute, and piano | SheetMusicPlus |
| Gold Coast Harmony | Ewazen, Eric | Trio | Advanced | For two horns and piano. | SheetMusicPlus |
| Trio | Ligeti, Gyorgy | Trio | Advanced | A rhythmically and musically challenging work for violin, horn, and piano. | SheetMusicPlus |
| Suite for Clarinet, Horn, and Piano | Wilder, Alec | Trio | Advanced | SheetMusicPlus – Margun Ed. | |
| Suite No. 1 for Horn, Tuba, and Piano | Wilder, Alec | Trio | Advanced | SheetMusicPlus – Margun Ed. | |
| Woodland Quartet | Ewazen, Eric | Quartet | Advanced | For four horns | SheetMusicPlus |
| Quartet from the Heartland | Ewazen, Eric | Quartet | Advanced | For a quartet of horn, trumpet, flute, and piano. | SheetMusicPlus |
| Easy Collection of Horn Quartets | Various/arr. David Marlatt | Quartet | Beginner | A great introduction to quartet playing for younger students | SheetMusicPlus |
| Pathways for horn quartet | Buss, Howard | Quartet | Adv Intermediate | Challenging in ensemble and harmonic language, but not too high or too technical. | SheetMusicPlus |
| Nineteen Viennese Horn Quartets Vol. 1 | Various/arr. William Scharnberg | Quartet | Adv Intermediate | From the mid-19th century. These traditional quartets (in 4 volumes) offer lots of musical challenges! | SheetMusicPlus |
| Nineteen Viennese Horn Quartets Vol. 2 | Various/arr. William Scharnberg | Quartet | Adv Intermediate | SheetMusicPlus | |
| Nineteen Viennese Horn Quartets Vol. 3 | Various/arr. William Scharnberg | Quartet | Adv Intermediate | SheetMusicPlus | |
| Nineteen Viennese Horn Quartets Vol. 4 | Various/arr. William Scharnberg | Quartet | Adv Intermediate | SheetMusicPlus | |
| Hogwarts Forever – Horn Quartet | Williams, John | Quartet | Adv Intermediate | SheetMusicPlus | |
| Christmas Holiday Quartet Collection | Various/arr. Greg Mclean | Quartet | Adv Intermediate | 10 holiday classical for 4 horns! | SheetMusicPlus |
This is not a complete list of French horn music for younger students – you can find a lot of other music over at the French horn music result list at SheetMusicPlus.com
Other Musical Resources
IMSLP.org
The Internation Music Score Library Project (IMSLP) has a large amount of public domain classical music. A list of pieces on IMSLP featuring the horn can be found here.
A word of caution, though. While there are some good things to be found, many of these editions are old, out-of-date, or inaccurate. They are fine to use as an introduction to a piece, but you should be sure to purchase a good edition sooner rather than later!
Horn Orchestral Excerpt Resources
- The International Horn Society has taken on the old HornExcerpts.org web page, which you can find right here. This website has a large collection of orchestral excerpts – with the relevant sheet music and several recordings of each excerpt, so you can get a sense of the style (and any traditional variations).
- The most comprehensive single resource would probably be The Orchestral Audition Repertoire for Horn: Comprehensive and Unabridged, compiled by David Thompson. It’s not cheap, at almost $100, but it is over 1,000 pages, and complete parts – not just the popular excerpts.
- Additionally, I put together a blog entry back in 2020 (during the pandemic) featuring several good orchestral excerpt resources for French horn. You can find that blog entry here.
Other Horn Music Stores
- Robert King Music: Now part of Alphonse-Leduc, they have a wide variety of horn music (as well as just about every other ensemble). The website is a bit of a pain to navigate, though.
- G. Henle Verlag: A German publisher with some excellent urtext (an edition written to reproduce the original as closely as possible, with minimal editorial editions) editions of Classical and Romantic era horn music. Mozart, Beethoven, Schumann, Dukas, and others. I linked several Henle editions above – buying these editions from SheetMusic.com has generally faster shipping than buying directly from the publisher.
- Thompson Edition: In addition to the above-mentioned orchestral repertoire book, Thompson Edition does have some other music for sale.
- RM Williams Publishing: Specializing in new chamber works for horn, this is a good place to find a lot of new works by Paul Basler.
- Mountain Peak Music: Wonderful pedagogical musical resources for brass teachers and students.
- Robert Ostermeyer Musikedition: A good source for all manner of Classical and Romantic era French horn music. A lot of lesser-known or hard-to-find music is available here. They also have scores for horn concerti as well as offering rental parts for performances.
