Hello Steve, I remember a masterclass at Showa Academy near Tokyo:
one student had all slides of his horn pushed in, completely and really struggled with intonation when playing together with piano accompaniment. I asked him, why he adjusted all slides that way. "My idols, the famous two players from Czech Rep. do the same & I follow their example." - Well, no blame on the two brothers, as you can do everything with such a vibrato - but never listen to it in slow motion ????? I told this student, when he would come to tomorrows class again with all slides in, I would not allow him to play a single note for me. It worked. +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ Am 19.11.2009 um 17:57 schrieb Steve Freides: > Is there a problem playing a horn one's teacher has tuned? I play a > Yamaha 666 I bought from fellow list member and horn player > extraordinaire Chris Wiljhelm, and I leave the slides all right where > he had them. I tended to play sharp early on, and sometimes gave in > and lengthened the main tuning slide to compensate, but these days I > do my best to leave it right where he had it. > > I figure it's my problem, not the horn's, to get the thing to play in tune. > > -S- > > On Thu, Nov 19, 2009 at 11:35 AM, <[email protected]> wrote: >> So why not use the 4th partial for the Bb and 8th on the F? If it's a >> beginner, then they should have no problem reaching 4th partial on the Bb and >> 8th on the F - and it will teach them to keep a steady tone if they can watch >> a strobe tuner. >> >> I think the problem is we're assuming that tuning is some difficult thing >> that only seasoned vets can do - but if an 8th grader can understand >> Algebra, he can understand how to tune a horn and how to listen for >> intonation, I >> think. >> >> Just my two cents. >> >> >> In a message dated 11/19/2009 3:48:03 A.M. Eastern Standard Time, >> [email protected] writes: >> >> [email protected] wrote: >>> What I originally said was to use the 8th partial on either side of >>> the horn to tune it. Your case, an F on the Bb side is going to be >>> 6th partial, will be sharp, and is never a good note to tune. What >>> defines a best note? The horn? The partial? If so, what partial? >> >> From time to time I hear folks talk about how the 6th partial is "never >> a good note to tune." In a perfectly-tuned harmonic series, the 6th >> partial (and 3rd partial) is only 2 cents sharp to equal-temperament. >> That means that--after perfectly in-tune partials 1, 2, 4, 8 & 16--the >> 3rd and 6th partials are the next-best in-tune partials! >> >> Of course no horn has a perfectly-tuned harmonic series, so this >> argument isn't necessarily a good one. I also haven't played many horns >> where the 6th partial c' on the B-flat horn was so sharp that it was >> useless for tuning. >> >> The 8th partial on the B-flat horn is high enough that many players >> (especially younger or weaker players) will sag on this note, even >> though it's "supposed to be" the in-tune 8th partial. >> >> Then there's the question of what note(s) on the horn is/are most useful >> to compare to the oboist's A? >> >> So which foot would you like to shoot? In my opinion, it's probably best >> to spend time getting your horn in tune with itself at home. It's >> impossible to set the valve slides so that every note on the horn is >> perfectly in tune. It's all a compromise. If the horn is fairly well in >> tune with itself, then you'll only have to make tiny changes to the main >> slide at rehearsal if the general pitch is different from 440. >> >> It's also worthwhile to make sure that other aspects of technique aren't >> affecting intonation. If you aren't using adequate air, chances are >> pitch will vary throughout the range. If your right hand position gets >> lazy and inconsistent, pitch suffers too. >> >> The horn is really pretty forgiving as far as intonation goes. If you >> haven't trained your ear to recognize what "in-tune" sounds like, you >> probably can't play in tune wherever your slides are. And, conversely, >> you can play pretty well in tune if your slides are merely "close >> enough" as long as your ear cues the rest of your body to make the >> necessary adjustments. >> >> >> Now, for the beginner who hasn't developed either ear or playing >> technique and wants to "tune" a double horn in just 8 or 9 easy steps: >> >> 1. Pull the main slide (the first one you get to as you follow the >> tubing away from the mouthpiece) about the width of your pinky. This >> slide affects every note on the horn. >> >> 2. Pull the F slide (the other big slide near the main slide) a little >> less than the main slide. This slide only affects notes on the F side of >> the horn. >> >> 2a. If you have a Holton Farkas, Conn 8D, Yamaha 668 (or similar) horn, >> the little slide that sticks straight up on the front of the horn is >> just and extra slide for emptying water. Leave it in all the way. (If >> you moved it, by the way, it would only affect the F side of the horn.) >> >> 2b. If you have a Conn 6D, the F slide is the tubing with a slide on >> both the top and bottom on the back of the horn. Only pull one end; use >> the other end for emptying water. >> >> The F horn valve slides are the ones on top: >> >> 3. Pull the first valve slide about the width of your pinky. >> 4. Pull the second valve slide a little less than the first. >> 5. Pull the third valve slide a little more than the first. >> >> The B-flat horn valve slides are the ones on bottom: >> >> 6-8. Pull each B-flat valve slide a little less than the F valve slides >> in front of them. >> >> 9. If you have a Holton Farkas or Merker (or similar) horn, there's a >> tiny slide that sticks out sideways near the thumb valve that only >> affects the B-flat horn. Pull it about the width of your pinky too. >> >> When you remove a slide to empty water, make the effort to return the >> slide to the same length of pull it had previously. Also, don't mix up >> the slides for the second valve (the F horn slide is longer). >> >> Once you get to be a more consistent player, then you can fiddle with >> these slides to help you play better in tune. (I bet you won't have to >> move them very far.) If you've got a good teacher, he or she can help >> you set your slides more precisely too. >> >> Greg >> _______________________________________________ >> 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/steve.freides%40gmail.com >> > _______________________________________________ > post: [email protected] > unsubscribe or set options at > https://pegasus.memphis.edu/cgi-bin/mailman/options/horn/hpizka%40me.com _______________________________________________ post: [email protected] unsubscribe or set options at https://pegasus.memphis.edu/cgi-bin/mailman/options/horn/archive%40jab.org
