LibGuides: Brass Resource Guide: Horn Performance and Practice Materials

Introduction

This page collects selected performance and practice materials available at MPAL! For suggestions to help you do some searching on your own for related material, refer to the call number and subject heading recommendations at the bottom of the page. As always, if you have any trouble finding material in the Library or navigating the catalog, don't hesitate to ask at the service desk!

Horn Bibliographies & Repertoire Guides

Below are a few examples of the horn bibliographies and repertoire guides available through MPAL.

Guide to the Solo Horn Repertoire by Seraphinoff, Richard and Linda Dempf (editors)
Call Number: ML128.H67 D46G8 2016
This comprehensive, annotated resource of solo repertoire for the horn documents in detail the rich catalogue of original solo compositions for the instrument. Intended as a guide for practical use and easy reference, it is organized into three large sections: works for unaccompanied horn, works for horn and keyboard, and works for horn and ensemble.
Horn Bibliographie by Brüchle, Bernhard
Call Number: ML128.H67 B78
This resource is a comprehensive bibliography of various types of horn music, including etudes and methods and music for solo, ensemble, and orchestra.
French Horn Music Literature with Composers Biographical Sketches by Sansone, Lorenzo
Call Number: 781.973 SA58F
This resource acts as a bibliography of different works of horn music based on their composers. The entries are listed alphabetically by composer and each entry includes a small biographical section on the composer.
The Index of French Horn Music by Wilkins, Wayne
Call Number: ML128.H67 W44
In order to access this resource, you must submit an online request to Oak Street through your library account in order to have it sent to your library of choice for you to pick up.
A Guide to Orchestral Excerpt Books for Horn by Wakefield, David A.
Call Number: ML128.H67 W23
This resource is a bibliography of etudes and method books for horn, with all of the works listed alphabetically by their composers.

Horn Instruction and Study Materials

The following are some examples of materials on horn instruction and study that can be found in MPAL and online.

Horn Technique by Schuller, Gunther A.
Call Number: MT420S38 H61992
Gunther Schuller is a well-known composer, conductor, educator, and author of books on jazz; his remarkable career also includes playing in the horn section of the Cincinnati Symphony while still in his teens and in the Metropolitan Opera Orchestra as Principal Horn from 1945 to 1959. First published in 1962, this revised edition of his classic book to horn playing includes an extensive guide to the literature for the instrument, with listings of more than 1,000 pieces from the solo, chamber, and orchestral repertory.
The Horn Handbook by Reynolds, Verne
Call Number: MT420R39 H6
This immensely practical handbook is the work of a musician, composer, and teacher at the Eastman School of Music. The first book to cover the topic, it presents a broad introduction to horn study, practice, and performance.
Teaching the French Horn: Why All the "Mystery"? by Robinson, William C.
Call Number: MT420R6 T3
This resource acts as a guide for music teachers on instructing the basic fundamentals of how to play the French horn, including proper embouchure, breath support, and the positioning of hands.
The Art of French Horn Playing; A Treatise on the Problems and Techniques of French Horn Playing by Farkas, Philip
Call Number: MT425.F26 A6 1956
In order to access this resource, you must submit an online request to Oak Street through your library account in order to have it sent to your library of choice for you to pick up.
Play Away! for French Horn, Mellophone or Alto Horn: A New Easy Method for Class or Individual Instruction by Beeler, Walter
Call Number: MT422B43 P57
This resource is an introductory method book for class and individual instruction on playing the horn.

HornMatters.com
Horn Matters is a free online magazine and the leading resource on the French horn. The mission of Horn Matters is to encourage, inspire, inform, and challenge horn players and to promote the French horn. This magazine contains various horn parts for both solo repertoire and orchestra in addition to etudes, exercises, and technical studies.