Jonathan, nearly nothing to add to your words, but would the crowd believe you ? If they are not willing to listen ? If they keep still this certain egotistical & egocentrical attitudes ?
Nobody responded to my few words, that besides intonation the dynamic balance is very important to make a certain chord sound in tune. Often the principal voice shifts from one player to the other. Jonathan, that´s nothing new to you surely. But the crowd out there should try it before lamenting or questioning our recommendations. ########################################################### Am 26.04.2011 um 22:35 schrieb Jonathan West: > On 26 April 2011 19:13, Steven Mumford <[email protected]> wrote: > >> >> >> ....is it to make sure the ensemble plays in tune? > > > It is the responsibility of EVERYONE participating. Everybody must listen to > the pitch of what is going on around them, and be ready to make an > instantaneous adjustment to every note they play. > > This is a bit of a hobby-horse of mine, I've played in too many amateur > orchestras which made less of an effort at this than they should have. > > Now, you have to learn how to do this. The first thing to do is to make sure > your instrument is as in tune with itself as it it possible to make it. This > is how I go about it > > http://jonathanhornthoughts.blogspot.com/2009/05/tuning-your-horn.html > http://jonathanhornthoughts.blogspot.com/2009/05/more-on-tuning.html > > Then, whenever you are playing in a group, you have to listen intently, and > adjust the tuning with your lips and/or hand whenever you think you might be > out. > > If you are not playing 1st horn, you work on the basis that the 1st horn is > always right, even if you think he or she is wrong. It is more important > that the horn section is in tune with itself than that individuals are in > tune with the rest of the orchestra. So you tune to the first horn. One > orchestra I used to play in, the first horn was always flat in the upper > register. I was playing 3rd, so I had to listen out for when he went high, > and flatten my notes to match his tuning. The principal is always right. > > If you are the principal horn, then it is your job to make sure you are in > tun with the rest of the orchestra. So you listen out to any other nearby > sections the woodwind or violins, and you make sure you are in tune with > them, and you rely on the rsst of the dsection to go with you. > > Now, there are two reasons you have to be prepared to adjust every note if > necessary. The first is obvious - whoever has the lead or the tune at that > moment might be out, and you have to match them. It doesn't matter if you > are perfectly in tune with a 440 A if you are out off tune with the solo > line. The other reason is that pitch varies. Even the pitch of the same note > is different depending on which key you happen to be in. I've described why > here > > http://jonathanhornthoughts.blogspot.com/2009/07/how-flat-is-that-open-e-on-f-side.html > http://jonathanhornthoughts.blogspot.com/2009/07/just-intonation-vs-equal-temperament.html > > Only keyboard instruments adopt that unnatural and messy compromise known as > equal temparament. The strings will naturally want to play in just > intonation for whatever key they happen to be in. Singers will tend to think > in just intonation - without ever realising that is what they are doing. So > you have to match. Remember, the horns don't lead for the most part, they > blend. That includes pitch as well as tone. > > It is possible to do tuning exercises as a section. There are plenty or > orchestral excerpts which consist of held notes or slow moving passages for > horn quartet. Print them off from IMSLP and try them out. Here are a few > examples. > > Sibelius 1, 2nd movement, beginning, letter F and letter P > Sibelius 2, 1st movement opening, letter M, 3rd movement letter E > Humperdinck, Hansel & Gretel overture opening & letter Q > Brahms 4, last movement opening > Bruckner 4, 1st movement bar 137 > > These are just a few that occur to me off the top of my head. There are > many, many others. If you are practicing tuning just as a duet, then most of > the Beethoven symphonies have marvellous duets you can use for the purpose. > > There is almost nothing in an orchestra that sounds as glorious as a > balanced horn section playing beautifully in tune together. It will make > spines tingle in the audience. > > Regards > Jonathan West > _______________________________________________ > 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
