Yes, Andrew, I fully understand writing for natural horns without key signatures - and even writing for a modern valved horn without key signatures if the part is written in the key of the piece, with a simple notation that it is for horn in that key (e.g. R. Strauss' Horn concertos were written for horn in Eb - I read the part in Eb, and transpose to horn in F, though those also use other keys and are given corresponding key signatures - it would be a nighmare trying to read all those accidentals). I have routinely navigated transpositions of Eb, C, and Bb and even (rarely) D. As John Howell responded, "ANY well-schooled hornist should be able to transpose any part in any key...", to which I would heartily aggree.
It does not, however, make sense to write a transposed part for a modern valved horn in F and not use a key signature if the key is something other than concert F. If you are writing historic music, then by all means write it historically - but then we wouldn't be talking about a piece in C minor transposed to horn in F without key signature but with E's and B's all individually flatted in the part. Right? There were perfectly good reasons for the invention of the key signature. Timothy A. Johnson On Sun, Oct 11, 2009 at 3:00 PM, Andrew Stiller <[email protected]>wrote: > > Historically, neither horns nor trumpets used key signatures at all until >> the 20th century, and even today you will find horn players who insist that >> key sigs. for horn are never correct. >> >> The reason for the tradition is that before the invention of valves, horns >> and trps. could effectively play in only one or two keys. If you wanted to >> change key, you'd have to change crooks, thereby changing the transposition >> of the instrument, so that, for example, music in F would be played on the >> F horn, while music in Eb ;would be played on the Eb horn. Thus a key >> signature was neither necessary nor appropriate. Even after the introduction >> of valves, composers continued to write *as if* the players were still >> changing crooks, and the players were perfectly content to go along with >> this. Only in the 20th c. did composers start using key sigs. for hn/trp >> parts, and the practice was by no means universal: Prokofiev, e.g., wrote >> horn parts w.o key sig. right into the 1950s. Key sigs. for tonal horn parts >> became standard practice only in the past fifty years. >> >> Andrew Stiller >> Kallisti Music Press >> http://www.kallistimusic.com/ > > > > _______________________________________________ > Finale mailing list > [email protected] > http://lists.shsu.edu/mailman/listinfo/finale > _______________________________________________ Finale mailing list [email protected] http://lists.shsu.edu/mailman/listinfo/finale
