1) The Instrument

The French Horn (hereinafter called the Horn – it’s what it’s called in Europe, anyway; there’s nothing really French about it) is made of brass, but horn players do not like to be considered brass players, rather “horn players” (privately believing themselves a cut above brass players). And why not? The horn is a more difficult instrument to play, and has usually a more important part to play, and more notes to play, than anyone in the main brass section in the symphony orchestra. (It’s another story in band music, of course.)

But what other brass instrument is not only put near the back of the orchestra, but has its bell facing backwards, and the player’s hand stuffed into it, muffling the sound? Oh, and played left-handed into the bargain. Something of a handicap from the start, wouldn’t you say?

Why the hand in the bell? Originally the idea of the inserted hand was to make possible notes which were missing from the old valveless horn. Pushing the hand in the bell lowers the pitch in varying degrees, unless it is jammed in really tight, when it suddenly jumps up a semitone. More of this later. Once the idea of supporting the bell with the right hand became established, things stayed that way after the valves were added. Although the valve system makes possible a complete chromatic scale, the right hand is still inserted for two reasons: 1) Having it there tones down the brassiness, giving the horn a more rounded and warmer sound which had become valued in its own right; 2) In certain circumstances it can be difficult to be dead in tune, and the hand is able to correct pitching errors.

[To see how the hand works: - extend your right hand forwards a little, as if about to shake hands. Now close the fingers and thumb together, just to seal the gaps between them. Keeping the fingers still pointing forwards, now bend the wrist leftwards and forwards a little. The base of the wrist would lie across the horn’s bell. The extent to which you do this would decide how much you modify the brassiness. In the true “stopped horn” effect, the hand virtually seals off the air exit. In normal playing it is just partial.]

The modern instrument has a few variations, but the preferred model is the so-called Double Horn in F and Bb. Three valves control the pitch as in a trumpet, and a fourth thumb valve switches between the F and Bb divisions. This duality concerns only the player; the composer and conductor being aware only of “Horns in F” which is the only key used in modern scores, in spite of many other keys appearing in earlier music. Always write for horns in F, sounding a perfect fifth lower than written.

The power of the Horn
If the hand came out of the horn and the bell faced forwards, the instrument would be about as powerful as the other brass, but as things are, the horn is not only quieter, but the rapid articulations possible on a trumpet are not really viable, the instrument being a trifle sluggish, and more than a trifle sluggish on its lowest notes. So horns are seldom asked to play really quick passages, and long holding notes are a stock-in-trade of the orchestrator.

In dynamic power the horn lies midway between the woodwind and brass, so can associate happily with either. It is capable of a gentle pp which can efface itself in any context, and also of a savage ff or even fff, though the latter will not be of the earth-shaking character of the heavy brass. For this reason, the orchestrator’s rule of thumb is that above mf you need two horns in unison to equal one trumpet. As four horns are usually found, a good fanfare could be played in four-part harmony by giving trumpets the top two parts, and the two lowest parts with two horns per part. (Of course two trombones could have taken the lower parts with a better blend, but it all depends on what effect is wanted, or perhaps the whole thing is too high for trombones.)

Turning to the woodwind, with which the horns very often join in, by keeping their volume under control the horns can virtually be considered part of the group. For this reason the horns appear in the score just below the woodwind, above the trumpet staves, even though they are lower in pitch.

Tonal Blending
The really great asset of the horns is their blending power. They blend with practically anything, though least with oboes as you might expect. They can have a thickening effect doubling strings, clarinets or bassoons. Clearly they are at home with the brass.

Because of their alto/tenor pitch range, horns often provide inner harmony suitable as a back-drop to counterpoint in the other groups. It is also surprising how well they can hold things together with just a single chord or interval whilst others move around them. In a nutshell, the horns are, or can be, the glue of the orchestra. (In the language of pop music, the pad.) It is difficult to imagine a situation where they would sound out of place. But note carefully that a single horn will stick out like a soloist: two or more horns blend in with other people much better. Read on.

Horns hunt in pairs
For a long time horns were always found in pairs, just like the woodwind. With a few exceptions, two horns was the norm in the classical period of Haydn and Mozart. Most of Beethoven’s orchestral music uses two, and four only became the norm in the latter part of the 19th century. Even today four horns is the usual arrangement, though virtually any number is theoretically possible. For historical reasons the four-horn arrangement splits itself into two unexpected pairs: Horns 1 & 2 on one stave and Horns 3 & 4 on another. The unexpected thing is this: that the 3rd horn is given a higher part than the 2nd. The accepted pairing meant that 1st hornists specialised in the higher range of the instrument, and 2nd hornists the lower. So when the other pair (3 & 4) arrived, they too were a high and a low specialist, dovetailing into the first pair. One more time: SATB harmony is Horns 1,3,2,4 pitchwise even though placed 1,2,3,4 in the score.

Muting
There are two ways to mute (or should I say further mute) the sound:
1) Hand stopping. The score instruction stopped, bouché, chiuso, or gestopft, (cancelled by open, ouvert, aperto, or offen) asks the player to ram his hand firmly into the bell, sealing it tightly. This creates a muffled sound. [It also causes the pitch to rise a semitone, but it is the player’s business to transpose it back, so we needn’t worry about this.] Can also be indicated by a cross + over the note, though this implies forcing the sound to make it distinctly brassy (cuivré).
2) Muting (con sord.). Horn mutes again give a quieter sound, though this is not identical to stopping, in spite of the way many composers and players ignore the difference.

2) Writing for Horns

I’m assuming you are writing for actual performance. Even if you are not, you want your recording to sound like a real orchestra, right? So write only what is practical for live players.

Range
The range provided in GPO for all the horns is the theoretical range of the horn, but few players would be able to cover all those notes with any certainty. In any case, high and low hornists specialise in the upper or lower part of the total range, and may even use different mouthpieces to facilitate this. So it is best to envisage two different ranges: one for horns 1 and 3, the other for horns 2 and 4. Even there, players are not happy at the extreme ends of the range. Have a look at this table, in which I suggest ranges which are safe and practicable:

The Full range is the complete gamut available in GPO. To be safe, stick to the High hornists’ range for players 1 and 3, and to the Low hornists’ range for players 2 and 4. If all four horns are to play in unison, then stick to the Tutti range or there could be some mistakes.

The 1st hornist can play the highest three notes Bb, B and C, but they are so close together embouchure-wise that it is all too easy to hit the wrong one if approaching by leap, so he would prefer to arrive at them with a scale passage, thus:

Jean Sibelius makes it a little harder to hit the same top note here:

And, considering horns 2 and 4, the bottom notes of the horn (which “speak” more slowly) can also be unsteady. The player needs a fraction of a second to ensure that his note is right. Do not write fast passages low down below C3 (sounding); long notes are safer. And mostly keep off very low notes altogether; they never sound pretty, and should be used only when you need a low sustained note which other instruments are too busy to provide.

Articulation
As I mentioned earlier, horns are not suited to fast articulation. If they must play a fast passage, it is better to split the melody between two horns, especially if there are leaps:

Notice the overlapping notes, a standard device in orchestration to secure continuity. Also, if you have the score of Britten’s Young Person’s Guide, see how the composer treats all four horns when they first enter the final fugue.

Breathing
All wind players must breathe, and hornists are no exception. However, a lot depends on the volume level, also the amount of movement. A single quiet note can be held for a surprisingly long time (say 6-8 bars of slowish tempo) but moving passages, especially if loud, require breathing spaces more frequently. In the next example the composer wanted to be sure his player would have plenty of breath to maintain the power and continuity in this important solo:

Of course, it isn’t a true solo, but the careful overlapping makes it sound like one. Notice how the 2nd horn must begin each note quietly, so as to insinuate himself into the texture. Horns in C sound an octave lower than written, by the way. Horns always transpose downwards.

Horn styles

In order of frequency, probably:

1) Sustained notes As mentioned above, holding chords, from 2-part to 4-part (or even more, if you fancy a large horn section). This is the commonest orchestral function for horns.

2) Repeated notes Like the other brass, horns are well suited to repeated notes, so chords can well stand the idea of beating out a rhythm. Almost any note values will serve, but a useful formula is this:

Known sometimes as the “anxious” rhythm, it imparts a nervous energy to the texture.

3) Melodies
A horn solo is one of the most beautiful sounds in the orchestra. It can sound romantic, sombre, cheerful, or majestic according to style. Remembering that one horn alone will tend to stick out anyway, you’d be best generally to use more than one horn if you don’t want a solo effect.

Another way to play a melody is horns in octaves – this always sounds well. This could be a countermelody instead of the principal one. Obviously the range will be a little restricted.

Finally, three or four horns could play in contrapuntal or semi-contrapuntal style.

4) Rests
Everybody should have a rest now and then, you know that. Just be careful that you don’t get so addicted to that very useful “warm wad” of horn chords holding everything together that you forget the wearying effect on the listener. He may not know why it’s wearisome, but could well feel it.

5) Tricks
Horns can play trills, glissandi, multiphonics, etc. If you are a trickster, look them up in the orchestration books. I do not recommend them for most people.


Functions in the score

1) Solos Already mentioned. Keep your solo in the middle part of the range for preference, i.e. within the confines of the treble stave in the written part.

2) Leading group With a reasonably light accompaniment, the horn section can make their mark even p or mf. See next example:

Note: when the harmony is only 3-part, you can either omit the 4th horn, as here in the first bar, or have the 3rd horn double the 1st in unison to strengthen the melody, with the 4th horn playing the lowest part and the 2nd horn the middle. Tchaikovsky might well have scored the passage as follows:

This sort of scoring is quite common. Compare it carefully with Ex. 7.

3) Background group Already mentioned, this is a constant function of the horn group – two or more horns playing chords or long holding notes. I mentioned in my woodwind tutorial that Mozart, in The Marriage of Figaro, used only partial woodwind during most of the opera. He never neglected the horns, though, even though their gamut was severely restricted to the tonic chord plus a short scale C-G at the upper part of the stave (written notes). In the entire opera, Mozart omitted the horns in only three concerted items, and two of those were for strings only. In other words, horns were regarded as essential members of the woodwind group. Why? Because of their pleasant tone and warm blending qualities. They didn’t play in every bar, of course, but played whenever a slightly thicker texture than minimum was required. You can do the same, with two, three, or four horns, used with discretion. With our modern valve-horns, you will be more ambitious than sticking to the tonic chord!

4) Part of the brass group In passages for full brass, the horns can certainly join in. They will quite likely double existing notes, as it is better that the heavy brass complete all the notes of the chord, though the “two horns = one trumpet” formula can still work, allowing the horn parts to lie between the trumpets and trombones. Another way is to interleave the horns between the brass parts, e.g. Tr Tr Hn Tr Hn Trom Hn Trom Hn Trom Tba.

5) Doubling a melody Either at unison or octave lower, horns will strengthen and give body to a melody on most other instruments. Hollywood scorers are particularly fond of horns an octave below the 1st violins in a powerful or romantic melody, taking the horns quite high sometimes for a strong emotional effect. Also, four horns, 1st and 2nd violins all in unison create a very powerful sound of great warmth.

6) Laying out the parts I have made two things clear: first, that four horns is the normal number; second, that 3rd horn should be given a higher part than 2nd horn. Even with this set-up, there is no need to feel totally bound by these two principles. The number of horns playing at any one time must be dictated by the needs of the situation, so now we can start laying down a different set of rules:

7) More or less than four horns Odd numbers (3, 5, 7) are rare and we most likely stick to the pairs system. So:
a) Two horns. If the orchestra is not very large, four horns could overweigh things. Many a good piece has been written with no more brass than two trumpets and two horns. (The four can make reasonable brass chords if interlocked Tr 1 Hn 1 Tr 2 Hn 2. Also Hn 1 Bsn 1 Hn 2 Bsn 2 can pass as four horns.)
b) You may quite often see five horns in an orchestra. The odds are that this is not the number specified by the composer, it is the common practice of providing a spare hornist (sitting on the right as you view them) to “bump up” the 1st horn player, i.e. taking over the easy or noisy bits so as to save his lip for the important solos. In other words, one or other of the two plays the first horn part by mutual arrangement.
c) Six horns. For a large orchestra. The extra two (one high and one low player, remember) can be considered as extra weight to be placed wherever necessary, or a doubling for three-part harmony, with two horns on each part. Or whatever.
d) Eight horns. Gosh, you are extravagant. Similar to six, but now you can double four parts. Mind, you will need plenty of heavy brass to balance, plus at least twelve woodwind, not to mention a good body of strings… Who’s paying for all this?

e) The “a 2” problem You may be aware of the wavering/phasing effect when two instruments of the same type play in unison. This is also true of horns, but it seems to matter little, probably because this sort of thing would be covered up by plenty of other stuff going on. It was even an old tradition to double horn notes in unison where convenient, to give greater security. This should not be necessary today except in amateur orchestras. Unison doubling should be done because you feel the line needs the strength of two instruments.

3) Further study

a) Consult the standard orchestration books.
b) Study scores!
c) Study scores!
d) Study scores!

Enjoy! Even take up playing the French Horn – you won’t regret it.



Terry Dwyer
November 2004