May 4, 2009
Proposal
Lyrical Phrasing on the Horn: Artistic Performance through Bel Canto Technique
Lecture-Recital Document
by
Denise Root Pierce 3896 Rowley Road Williamston, Michigan 48895
I have read this proposal and believe it is ready for consideration by the Graduate Committee:
Prof. Daniel Katzen
Dr. Ed Reid
Prof. Jerry Kirkbride Lyrical Phrasing on the Horn: Artistic Performance through Bel Canto Technique
Intent and scope of study
A lyrical melodic style is among the most desired soloistic attributes for any musician. How can horn teachers more effectively teach lyrical horn playing? How can a student be helped to develop from a mere horn player to artist performer?
Lyricism refers to the musical quality of being suitable for singing. Of all the vocal music traditions and styles, perhaps the most exquisitely lyrical and melodically pleasing is that of the bel canto (literally, “beautiful singing”), a singing style that
refers to the Italian vocal style of the 18th and early 19th centuries, the qualities of which include perfect legato production throughout the range, the use of a light tone in the higher registers and agile and flexible delivery. More narrowly, it is sometimes applied exclusively to Italian opera of the time of Rossini, Bellini and Donizetti.1
Since instrumentalists aspire to a “singing” tone and melodic style, what better model for horn players than that of the bel canto singer?
Consequently, to develop a pedagogy of lyrical horn playing, it is the intent of the proposed study to examine the art of bel canto singing; to apply bel canto singing principles to horn technique as a means of developing a pedagogical approach to a lyrical performance
1 Owen Jander and Ellen T. Harris. "Bel canto." In Grove Music Online. Oxford Music Online, http:// www.oxfordmusiconline.com/subscriber/article/grove/music/02551 (accessed April 10, 2009). 2 style; and to apply this horn performance approach to selected bel canto repertoire arranged for horn and piano. The proposed study will only address those aspects of bel canto singing technique that are particularly valuable for horn performers. Repertoire will be chosen from the few existing solo horn and piano pieces, and early nineteenth-century vocal music adapted for horn and piano, composed by Vincenzo Bellini, Luigi Cherubini, Gaetano
Donizetti, and Giachino Rossini. The music will be chosen to best illustrate the pedagogical concepts and characteristics of lyrical playing in the bel canto style.
I will write a pedagogical explanation of how to play lyrically on the horn implementing bel canto principles as applied to the horn. I will investigate vocal pedagogy related to lyricism, study the recorded performances of singers2 who have specialized in the bel canto repertoire, and discuss analogies between the voice and horn with regard to achieving these in performance. Included will be suggested exercises for developing the necessary techniques on horn.
While it may be expected that horn performers would want to approach any soloistic music, whether orchestral, chamber music, or solo repertoire, in a lyrical manner, it is my conviction that vocal music itself provides the most pedagogically rewarding repertoire for developing lyrical performance habits. Therefore, I intend to integrate the principles of lyrical horn technique founded on the art of bel canto singing with artistic performance as
2 e.g. Cecilia Bartoli, Kathleen Battle, Marilyn Horne, Joan Sutherland, Luciano Pavarotti, Renée Fleming, Anne-Marie Rodde. 3 applied to selected vocal repertoire adapted for horn. In addition, I will also demonstrate how this technique can be applied to selected early nineteenth-century horn repertoire.
I will be borrowing selected vocal repertoire from the nineteenth century that is best suited to playing with a vocal style and adapt it for “singing” on the horn. The purposes in utilizing vocal repertoire are as follows:
1) For the purpose of teaching a singing style, it is helpful to begin with songs originally intended to be performed by a singer.
2) Considering that listening is an aid to learning lyricism, live or recorded vocal music can provide an excellent example of a model performance demonstrating a singing, lyrical style.
3) A precedent has been set for brass players to play vocal music in existing arrangements of vocal music for brass instruments.
4) The texts of vocal music can help a student better understand what emotion to convey through the music.
Ultimately, it is hoped that the outcome of the proposed study will be to encourage bel canto horn playing featuring a beautiful sound, flexible technique and shaping of legato phrases used to achieve a singing, expressive style.
Statement of Primary Thesis
Develop a pedagogical guide to the bel canto style for horn. This guide will present a bel canto horn pedagogy and style, applying it to nineteenth-century repertoire composed by
Vincenzo Bellini, Luigi Cherubini, Gaetano Donizetti, and Giachino Rossini. Using this guide, horn performers may develop a lyrical singing style on the horn and teach that style 4 through bel canto technique as applied to horn technique. Included will be discussion of how one may seek to cultivate a perfect legato, work toward a beautiful sound throughout the range of the horn, and play with a light mechanism to result in improved agility. Thereafter, the techniques are to be applied to selected nineteenth-century horn and piano repertoire or vocal repertoire adapted for horn and piano, modeling the resulting bel canto horn style in a lecture recital.
Justification
The proposed study is unique in its application of principles of bel canto style and technique to horn performance. The included repertoire for horn and piano also distinguishes the proposed study from other pedagogical treatises since it is typical for pedagogues to focus on exercises rather than complete musical works. While there are four doctoral dissertations that are related to the proposed study, they either do not address the horn, do not consider the art of singing, or do not demonstrate application of the pedagogical principles to musical repertoire.
In order to establish the viability of the proposed study, a survey of related literature was undertaken. Three categories of literature were found: sources addressing horn pedagogy, sources concerning bel canto singing, and sources dealing with the development of musicianship. In several cases, a source bridged two areas, e.g. horn pedagogy and musicianship. 5
Horn Pedagogy
Louis-François Dauprat, in his Method for Cor Alto and Cor Basse,3 was an advocate of studying singing as a supplement to the study of horn. He states:
teachers of wind instruments have not been able to recommend this Singing Method too highly to their students, as it contains so many precepts that are just as useful for instrumentalists as for singers. It is particularly suitable for shaping the student’s style in that it teaches him to phrase melodies and give them expression, to play with taste, to place all the musical ornaments with discernment, and finally, to imprint upon each piece the character that belongs to it.4
Dauprat includes adaptations of “solfeges that the late Mengozzi and other professors at the
Conservatoire selected out of the works of the most celebrated Italian composers”5 in his
Method.6 These adaptations, however, were intended for the hand horn and are limited to the one singing method from the Paris Conservatory.
3 Louis-Francois Dauprat, Method for Cor Alto and Cor Basse (Complete English translation of the first edition published by Zetter, Paris, ca. 1824), Edited by Viola Roth. (Bloomington, IN: Birdalone Music, 1994).
4 Ibid, 196.
5 Ibid, 196.
6 Ibid. 6
In his books, The Art of Musicianship,7 The Art of French Horn Playing,8 and The Art of
Brass Playing,9 Philip Farkas recognizes the importance of listening to performed music in order to develop a mature understanding of musicianship. Farkas states, “A musical environment is important in the development of a sensitive musician. This environment includes frequent listening to artists…”10 Regarding phrasing, he refers to the “pivot-point”11 of the phrase, but does not draw specific connections with horn technique in order to show how to achieve the pivot-point successfully. According to Mr. Farkas, the “pivot-point” in a musical phrase “almost always (includes) one or more “pivot” notes, around which the phrase seems to center”.12 He calls them “pivot” notes because,
as the phrase leads to such a note, it seems to require more and more intensity (like traveling up-hill) until this note is reached, at which point the direction pivots and a feeling of relaxation appears (like reaching the crest of a hill and starting down the other side).”13
7 Philip Farkas, The Art of Musicianship, (Rochester, NY: Wind Music, Inc., 1976).
8 Philip Farkas, The Art of French Horn Playing: A Treatise on the Problems and Techniques of French Horn Playing, (Evanston, Il.: Summy-Birchard, 1956).
9 Philip Farkas, The Art of Brass Playing : A Treatise on the Formation and Use of the Brass Player's Embouchure, (Rochester, N.Y. : Wind Music, Inc., 1989).
10 Farkas, The Art of Musicianship, p.7
11 Farkas pivot point
12 Farkas, The Art of French Horn Playing, p.55
13 7
In addition, his musical examples are drawn from instrumental music rather than from vocal music—he gives examples from orchestral literature and suggestions for etude books for practicing playing musically. There is little reference to a singing style, though he refers to a technique which is related to a vocal style, forming vowel sounds in the oral cavity as an aid to slurring—a technique that is critical to achieving a true singing style on the horn.
Oscar Franz, in his book Complete Method for the French Horn,14 gives directions in how to interpret a phrase and includes some “Exercises for Style and Interpretation” in order
“to acquire correct and systematic breathing together with the Art of Phrasing.”15 His exercises are taken from orchestral and chamber music literature, but do not include specific technical resources to achieve smooth legato, or to achieve a desired singing style. He does mention an approach to executing a slur which references a vocal technique, “A higher note is connected with a lower one by means of a slight contraction or pressure of the larynx towards the higher note.”16
14 Oscar Franz, Complete Method for the French Horn, English text by Gustav Saenger, (New York: Carl Fischer, n.d).
15 ibid., 51
16 ibid., 33 8
Several books about horn technique, including Gunther Schuller’s book Horn
Technique,17 The Horn Handbook by Verne Reynolds,18 Collected Thoughts and Teaching and Learning, Creativity, and Horn Performance by Douglas Hill,19 Barry Tuckwell’s book
Horn,20 and Teaching Brass: A Resource Manual,21 do not address the subjects of lyricism, expressiveness or singing. Variously, these sources do discuss tone production and tone quality; legato playing; intonation; horn history; technical aspects of slurring and breath support; and the value of using recordings as a supplement to learning. Phrasing is referred to only in the sense that breath control is an important element. A thorough and practical approach to aspects of musical expression appears to be outside the scope of these sources.
Some authors, including Douglas Hill, in his book Extended Techniques for the
Horn22 and James Decker, with his book entitled Horn,23 include a cassette and/or a video
17 Gunther Schuller, Horn Technique, 2nd ed., (Oxford; New York : Oxford University Press, 1992).
18 Verne Reynolds, The Horn Handbook, (Portland, Or.: Amadeus Press, 1997).
19 Douglas Hill, Collected Thoughts on Teaching and Learning, Creativity and Horn Performance, (Miami, FL: Warner Brothers Publications, 2001).
20 Barry Tuckwell, Horn, (New York : Schirmer Books, 1983).
21 Wayne Bailey, William Stanley, Thomas Stein, Alan Siebert, Patrick Miles, Teaching Brass: A Resource Manual, (Columbus, OH: McGraw-Hill, 1992).
22 Douglas Hill, Extended Techniques for the Horn, A Practical Handbook for Students, Performers and Composer, (Miami, FL: Warner Brothers Publications, 1983).
23 James Decker, Master Series for Horn 9 recording to demonstrate the basic drills and exercises for various technical elements in playing the horn.
Several books about the horn, including Birchard Coar’s The French Horn,24 Robin
Gregory’s book The Horn,25 and A Practical Guide to French Horn Playing26 by Milan
Yancich address certain aspects related to the proposed study. Topics include physical aspects of playing, an approach to achieving a smooth legato, a perspective on when to breathe during a phrase and when to tongue, achieving smooth slurs, developing a beautiful sound, good breathing and tone placement technique. Exercises may or may not be included, but none of these authors apply the techniques to horn repertoire.
Fred Fox, in his book Essentials of Brass Playing,27 briefly addresses many aspects of a singing approach to playing. These include use of the vowel sound to accomplish consistent tone quality throughout the range of the horn and keeping an open, relaxed throat even in the upper register. He explains each principle, but does not include any musical examples, or exercises for practicing them.
24 Birchard Coar, The French Horn, (Ann Arbor, MI: Edwards Brothers, 1947).
25 Robin Gregory, The Horn; a Comprehensive Guide to the Modern Instrument and its Music, Revised and enlarged Edition, (New York, F. A. Praeger, 1969).
26 Milan Yancich, A Practical Guide to French Horn Playing, (Bloomington, Ind., Wind Music, 1971).
27 Fred Fox, Essentials of Brass Playing : An Explicit, Logical Approach to Important Basic Factors that Contribute to Superior Brass Instrument Performance, (Los Angeles: Fox, 1974). 10
Marvin Howe appears to have favored a singing approach to playing the horn. In his beginning method, Method for French Horn,28 Howe states, “Believing as I do that the horn is best as a singer of smooth melodies, I have laid heavier stress on legato playing than is usual in most beginning brass methods.”29 His method contains many exercises intended to develop a legato style, but is lacking specific instruction in how to technically achieve the most successful legato. Further, the method does not include specific melodies drawn from vocal repertoire. In his dissertation, A Critical Survey of Literature, Materials, Opinions, and
Practices Related to Teaching the French Horn,30 Howe concludes that an effective approach to horn performance includes a number of qualities that correspond to bel canto artistry, “A great help in ensuring success is a good foundation based upon discriminate listening, effective breath control, an easy lip vibration, and truly controlled resonance.”31
Frøydis Ree Wekre in her book, Thoughts on Playing the Horn Well,32 refers to a mandatory element of playing with a singing style. She writes, “Make the slurs impeccable—
28 Marvin C. Howe, Method for the French horn, (New York, Remick Music Corp., 1950).
29 Ibid., Forward
30 Marvin C. Howe, A Critical Survey of Literature, Materials, Opinions, and Practices Related to Teaching the French Horn, Ph.D. diss., (University of Iowa, 1966).
31 Ibid., 329
32 Frøydis Ree Wekre, Thoughts on Playing the Horn Well, (Oslo, Norway: Frøydis Ree Wekre, 1994). 11 no holes, no bumps, just one long smooth line.”33 She provides valuable slur exercises, but fails to specifically provide the student with detailed information about how one might accomplish the beautiful slur suggested.
In his book, Brass Performance and Pedagogy,34 Keith Johnson states:
…the player should listen to fine vocal recordings of singing in comparable registers and character that impart some of the flowing, seemingly effortless musicianship so desirable in any performing medium.35
In a fashion similar to the pedagogical tradition of bel-canto, he goes on to suggest to students that they should:
…spend a few minutes each day playing simple tunes, very easy passages, and slow, smooth scales so that you can really listen to the sounds being produced. It is easy to become so absorbed in the technical difficulties of the instrument that attention to musicality receives short shrift.36
He draws many parallels between brass playing and the voice and singing:
For all its seeming complexity, the embouchure is a rather simple entity that, much like a singer’s vocal cords, tends to be not so much changed or improved in and of itself but rather improved by changing the energy (i.e., the breath) that activates it.37
33 Ibid., 6
34 Keith Johnson, Brass Performance and Pedagogy, (Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall, 2002).
35 Ibid., 84
36 Ibid., 85
37 Ibid., 32 12
Johnson is an advocate of a singing approach to a brass instrument, but, valuable as his perspectives are, he does not provide a specific information about the technique required to accomplish it on brass instruments, or suggest specific exercises or repertoire as an aid in practicing.
Four doctoral dissertations are related to the proposed study, though in important respects they do not duplicate the proposed thesis. In his dissertation, The Application of Bel
Canto Concepts and Principles to Trumpet Pedagogy and Performance,38 Malcolm
Beauchamp compares basic bel canto pedagogical principles with trumpet pedagogy and applies the bel canto principles to existing trumpet studies.
In his dissertation entitled Bowings for brass: A visualization tool for horn players,39
Paul Stevens uses bowing concepts central to musicality in string playing as a visualization tool to help develop good musical rhetorical style for horn players. He includes the principals of tension and relaxation, the rhythmical hierarch of a typical measure, the proper treatment of the up-beat (including the “up-beat bar”) and the correct way to end phrases.
38 Malcolm Eugene Beauchamp, The Application of Bel Canto Concepts and Principles to Trumpet Pedagogy and Performance, Ph.D. diss., (The Louisiana State University and Agricultural And Mechanical College, 1980).
39 Paul William Stevens, Bowings for Brass: A Visualization Tool for Horn Players, D.M.A. diss., (University of California, Los Angeles, 2000). 13
Barbara Zumwalt Comelek, in her dissertation Allusions to the Vocal Art in Selected
Wind Instrument Pedagogical Sources (Brass, Woodwind)40 concludes that a very close relationship exists between the wind instrument and voice, there are shared pedagogical theories of wind instruments and voice and a background in the study of voice and singing methods provides a desirable foundation for wind players.
Virginia M. Weichman Thompson’s dissertation, A Comprehensive Performance
Project In Horn Literature With An Essay Consisting Of A Comparison Of Selected Writings
On Melodic Interpretation,41 is closely related to the proposed study in terms of her emphasis on melodic interpretation (based on the work of a number of authors including Philip Farkas,
Donald Barra, and James Thurmond), and the inclusion of art songs transcribed for winds
“for the purpose of improving interpretation through practice.”42 The proposed study, however, focuses on “singing” through the horn, the development of a pedagogy of bel canto style for horn performance, and its application to nineteenth-century horn and/or vocal repertoire. While Thompson wisely includes unedited transcriptions of art songs for winds to allow the reader to apply interpretive ideas, the proposed study includes bel canto repertoire for horn and piano, none which duplicate those included in Thompson’s dissertation.
40 Barbara Kay Zumwalt Comelek, Allusions to the Vocal Art in Selected Wind Instrument Pedagogical Sources (Brass, Woodwind, D.A. diss., (Ball State University, 1985).
41 Virginia M. Weichman Thompson, A Comprehensive Performance Project in Horn Literature with an Essay Consisting of a Comparison of Selected Writings on Melodic Interpretation, D.M. diss., (University of Iowa, 1987).
42 Ibid. 14
Thompson examines melodic interpretation, but the proposed study is focused on developing the technique necessary to achieve the lyricism needed to render expressive melody.
Dr. Gregory Burton, in his article Teaching Beginning Brass Players: A Singing
Approach43 fosters the association of singing with production of a beautiful tone as a starting point and promotes early development of a beautiful sound in teaching beginning brass players.
Finally, Laurie S. Shelton, in her article Singing on the Horn: A Selective Survey of
Chamber Music for Voice, Horn and Keyboard44 remarks that, “A comparison of horn and vocal technique reveals amazing similarities between the two.”45
Bel Canto
Treatises on the history and practice of bel canto singing include Weldon Whitlock’s
Bel Canto for the Twentieth Century,46 which addresses the fundamental techniques included in the pedagogical bel canto vocal tradition. He includes the subjects of pure vowels, pure legato and the unbroken phrase. He includes selected vocalizes in appendix I. I believe that
43 Gregory J. Burton, “Teaching Beginning Brass Players: A Singing Approach,” [article online] (Accessed 30 October 2004. Available from: http://hrsbstaff.ednet.ns.ca/fergusm6/tips/conductors/teaching beg brass.htm)
44 Laurie S. Shelton, “Singing on the Horn: A Selective Survey of Chamber Music for Voice, Horn, and Keyboard,” Journal of Singing, Vol. 54, no.3 (Jan-Feb 1998.) 25-39.
45 Ibid.
46 Weldon Whitlock, Bel Canto for the Twentieth Century, (Champaign, IL: Pro Musica Press, 1968). 15 there are direct parallels to these techniques in achieving a singing style on the horn.
Christine Gerstein, in her document entitled Early musical Training in Bel Canto Vocal
Technique: A Brief History and Philosophy47 offers a brief history and philosophy of the origins of bel canto vocal style and describes the pedagogical methods used to achieve bel canto ideals in singing. Bel Canto Principles and Practices,48 by Cornelius L. Reid, includes an explanation of the bel canto ideal sound, basic principles of bel canto, thought process, breath control, etc. Each of the bel canto principles may be used in direct relationship to lyrical playing on the horn.
Many books explore approaches to singing technique, such as Developing Voices,49 by William Vennard, which provides an outline of comparative vocal pedagogy and notes on recordings which he provides as a tool for learning. Articles, such as “Singing: A
Comparative Analysis,”50 by John Collins, examine the teaching concepts and practices of voice teachers. Collins compares nineteenth-century European with contemporary New York voice teachers. He includes the concepts of breathing, vibration, resonance, vowel formation, the tongue, high tones and forcing versus freedom.
47 Christine W. Gerstein, “Early musical Training in Bel Canto Vocal Technique: A Brief History and Philosophy,” paper prepared for the Hofstra University library, 1994, ERIC doc. ED 393758.
48 Cornelius L. Reid, Bel Canto Principles and Practices, (New York: Coleman-Ross Company, Inc., 1950).
49 William Vennard, Developing Voices, (New York: Carl Fischer, Inc., 1973).
50 John C. Collins, “Singing: A Comparative Analysis,” NATS [National Association of Teachers of Singing] Bulletin, USA Vol. XXV/3, 4 (February, May 1969) 32-37; 12-19. 16
Bel Canto methods, such as Mathilde Marchesi’s Bel Canto: A Theoretical: &
Practical Vocal Method,51 give an extremely sound pedagogical approach to the fundamentals of bel canto singing. Marchesi includes many explanations of technique, provides simple graded exercises to practice the techniques, then provides actual repertoire to practice. This is a thorough, effective approach to pedagogy, which I hope to emulate in developing a sound pedagogical approach to playing lyrically and expressively on the horn.
Other bel canto-inspired vocal methods, such as D. A. Clippinger’s The Clippinger Class-
Method of Voice Culture,52 present a concise approach to vocal pedagogy that reinforces the importance of listening, freedom and lack of tension in tone production, correct musical thinking and beauty of sound. These elements are also fundamental to the pedagogy of lyricism and expression on the horn.
Musicianship
James Morgan Thurmond, in his book, Note Grouping: A Method for Achieving
Expression and Style in Musical Performance,53 provides the most thorough pedagogical
51 Mathilde Marchesi, Bel Canto: A Theoretical and Practical Vocal Method, N.d. (Reprint, New York: Dover Publications Inc., 1970).
52 D. A. Clippinger, The Clippinger Class-Method of Voice Culture, (Bryn Mawr, PA: Oliver Ditson Company/Theodore Presser, 1932).
53 James Morgan Thurmond, Note Grouping : A Method for Achieving Expression and Style in Musical Performance. Foreward by Weston H. Noble. Camp Hill, PA: JMT Publications, 1982. 17 approach to phrasing in print today. The concept he provides is based on cross-bar phrasing and is fundamental to interpreting a musical phrase
Psychological studies, such as Christopher Johnson’s article “Musicians and
Nonmusicians Assessment of Perceived Rubato in Musical Performance,”54 evaluate the nature of perception in the listening experience. Patrik Juslin, in his dissertation Five facets of musical expression: a psychologist’s perspective on music performance,55 suggests that musical expression consists of five primary components including musical structure, emotional expression, random variations, motion principles and stylistic unexpectedness.
David Hays, in his dissertation The messa di voce as an ornament in the string playing of the seventeenth, eighteenth and nineteenth centuries56 explores the messa di voce, or swell on a single note, as an ornament of expression used by both singers and instrumentalists. The swell was used on long note exercises with the purpose of gaining the skill necessary to perform with an appropriate degree of musical nuance and expression.
54 Christopher Johnson, “Musicians and Nonmusicians Assessment of Perceived Rubato in Musical Performance,” Journal of Research in Music Education, Vol. 44 (Spring 1996), 84-96.
55 Patrik N. Juslin, “The Five Facets of Musical Expression: A Psychologist's Perspective on Music Performance,” Psychology of Music, Vol. 31, no.3 (July 2003), 273-302.
56 David Hays, The Messa Di Voce as an Ornament in the String Playing of the Seventeenth, Eighteenth and Nineteenth Centuries, D.M. diss., Northwestern University, 2000. 18
In his dissertation Mathis Lussy’s Theory of Rhythm as a Basis for a Theory of
Expressive Performance (Switzerland),57 Mine Dogantan reconstructs and interprets Mathis
Lussy’s theory of rhythm and expressive performance. Lussy’s theory, based on the principle of action-repose, claimed that the source of expression lies in unexpected metric, rhythmic and tonal events. Dogantan explores connections with Lussy’s predecessors as well as recent theories of rhythm and of the psychology of expressive performance.
Burton Kaplan, in his article “Musical Expression Motivates: Integrating Technique and Musical Expression from the Start”58 observes,
I have found that students at each level of technical control are remarkably capable of making music in an insightful and expressive way…their sense of fulfillment in expressing musical feelings within recognizable musical structures makes their practicing interesting enough to motivate them to practice a lot, and they develop a confident performance technique.59
In her article Going Through a ‘Phrase’: Developing Musicality in Young Piano
Students by Singing,”60 Yun-Pai Hsu discusses the relationship of singing as a foundation to developing musicianship and specific benefits of a singing foundation. These benefits include: breathing, memorization, technique, keeping a beat and developing musicality.
57 Dogantan, Mine. Mathis Lussy’s Theory of Rhythm as a Basis for a Theory of Expressive Performance (Switzerland). Ph.D. diss., Columbia University, 1997.
58 Burton Kaplan, “Musical Expression Motivates: Integrating Technique and Musical Expression from the Start,” The American Music Teacher, Vol. 53, no. 2 (Oct./Nov. 2003) 31-32.
59 Ibid.
60 Yun-Pai Hsu, “Going Through a ‘Phrase’: Developing Musicality in Young Piano Students by Singing,” The American Music Teacher, Vol. 49, no. 5 (April/May 2000) 30-32. 19
Organization
I. Introduction
A. Intent and scope of study, thesis, definitions, justification, survey of related literature
B. Bel Canto: the art of beautiful singing
II. Pedagogy: Correlations of bel canto technique and horn performance
III. Adapting repertoire for lyrical performance (vocal repertoire for horn and piano)
IV. Applications: singing on the horn (performance analyses of selected repertoire)
Methodology
Chapters I-II of the proposed study will establish an approach to horn technique based on the art of singing including an introduction, discussion of bel canto technique, and exposition of an approach to pedagogy for horn that is based on bel canto technique for the purpose of developing the ability to play lyrically. Horn exercises based on bel canto principles will be given in Chapter II to illustrate the technical/musical content presented.
Chapters III-IV of the proposed study will involve adapting selected solo vocal repertoire for horn and piano and applying bel canto horn technique to the selected solo vocal repertoire. Chapter III will be comprised of adapting selected solo vocal repertoire for horn and piano. These arrangements will be prepared considering appropriate keys, range, articulation, and dynamics suitable for effective horn performance. Chapter IV will consist of the application of bel canto horn technique to selected repertoire: vocal repertoire adapted for 20 horn and piano as well as selected horn repertoire. Included will be performance analyses of selected pieces to demonstrate the process of applying the pedagogy. An Appendix to the study will include additional vocal repertoire adapted for horn and piano that will be performed in a lecture recital to demonstrate the principles developed in the study.
The following is an outline of the proposed study:
I. Investigate bel canto singing technique in support of lyrical phrasing. The following techniques will be investigated:
A. Perfect legato production throughout the range. • Shaping the phrase: beginning of tone, ending of tone, breathing • Air • Dynamics • Tonguing
B. A light tone in the higher registers. • Approaching high notes • Tone quality (concept) • Embouchure • Oral cavity • Throat • Air
C. Agile and flexible delivery. • Rapid passages • Fingering • Tonguing • Air
II. Correlate bel canto singing technique to horn technique. Establish an approach to horn technique based on the art of singing in the bel canto tradition. Discuss analogies between bel canto technique and horn technique, illustrate horn technique principles with developmental exercises. 21
A. Beautiful sound and legato– long tones, messa di voce, perfect intonation, sustaining with perfect vowels (oh, ah, ee, etc.)
B. Agility
1. begin with exercises of smallest intervals (2nds and 3rds) both ascending and descending
2. portamento on horn using exercises of larger intervals of 4ths and 5ths
3. combining previous exercises with natural horn exercises based on John Burden slurs
4. exercises of large intervals using tongue and air together with vowel shaping to ascend and descend in a seamless manner.
Low to middle register = “oh-ah” Middle register to upper = “ah-ee” Upper to middle register = “ee-ah” Middle register to low = “ah-oh” C. Initiation of tone
1. using an “air cushion”
2. tone entrance from the side in a horizontal manner
3. enter tone that is already in motion, “people mover”
4. EAT of Neil Sanders: Embouchure-Air-Tone
D. Termination of tone
1. Dissolve sound, tapering while still moving forward with active breath.
2. Steady support to the very end of the phrase. 22
E. Sustaining perfect vowels through each phrase, leading with air. Air is in constant motion with direction, leading somewhere, or coming back from somewhere.
F. Breathing at musically appropriate places in the music is even more obvious with words, since musical phrasing is often likened to speaking a sentence with appropriate punctuation.
III. Adapt selected vocal repertoire, chosen to best represent bel canto principles, providing a transcription for horn and piano. For example:
A. Bellini
B. Rossini
C. Donizetti
IV. Apply bel canto principles to selected vocal repertoire to demonstrate lyrical phrasing resulting from the applied principles.
In summary, attributes of the resulting artistic, lyrical horn playing are as follows:
1. A beautiful sound
2. Solid intonation, playing in the center of tones
3. Elegant entrance to notes, start note with a “cushion,” playing “horizontally” for the initiation and termination of tones
4. Slurs are smooth as silk “oo-ah-ee,” MP glissando/smear
5. Use of time for expression – rubato, accelerando, etc.
6. Full note lengths with perfect legato production throughout the range
7. Shaping an elegant phrase using intensity rather than volume
a. Breath support maintained and directed 23
b. Maintaining proper intensity of phrase throughout tones, breaths and rests
c. Maintaining the line, participating mentally during rests
d. Thurmond concept of short to long, weak to strong in relation to musical direction throughout a phrase
I will define attributes of lyricism using the following terminology:
1. Articulation refers to the initiation and termination of a tone.
2. Tone placement is playing in the center of a tone with purity resulting from vowel formation, accurate intonation, breath support and embouchure firmness.
3. Tongue placement refers to where the tongue is held during a sustained tone.
4. Dynamic includes the variation within a lyrical passage moving from softer to louder or louder to softer.
5. Pacing of the phrase includes elements which enhance musicality relating to time within the music.
Sample Application
In applying the pedagogical approach to a piece of music, I will identify the phrase structure, indicate “pivot point(s)” where appropriate, discuss breathing plan, observe changes needed to account for register shifts, recommend changes in loudness (dynamics), etc. Emphasis will be those performance aspects that contribute to lyricism and beautiful musical expression. The following performance analysis of varied musical excerpts, is given as an example of an application of bel canto horn technique.
The ideal tone quality for the bel canto singer is pure, resonant, even and beautiful.
This is produced by breath control, pure vowel formation, freedom and ease in production. 24
Pure vowels produce evenness in sound for a singer and in the same way a horn player focuses on the center of each tone with register appropriate vowel formation. In addition, a relaxed larynx and steady breath control produce resonance and evenness in tone.
When beginning the very first note, the player needs to be thinking of music already in motion, where it is leading, and approaching the note from the side in a horizontal manner.
Often the image of a people mover in an airport is helpful. The mover is already going…one just walks onto it and joins in the forward movement which already has been present.
Technically, the air precedes the tongue providing an air cushion, just as a singer prepares the initial consonant with an air cushion that softens the note beginning and creates a flowing style from the very start. The first note of “Casta Diva,” from Bellini’s opera Norma (Ex.1) should be approach in this horizontal manner, intensifying the phrase to the pivot point.
Ex. 1. Bellini, Norma, “Casta Diva,” mm. 4-5
Moving through measures 4 and 5 of “Casta Diva,” there is a long build up of intensity through each note directly to the other, as if there is no space whatsoever between the notes.
A helpful image is to imagine the notes to be sticky and yet pulling forward. The first 3 beats build to the pivot point note on beat 4. This phrase is very balanced, lessening in intensity for 25
3 beats after the pivot point. Continuing at the end of measure 5, the following phrase begins building once again, with intensity (oh, so gradually) to the downbeat in measure 4.
Ex. 2. Bellini, Norma, “Casta Diva,” mm. 4-7
Round off the quarter note at the beginning of measure 6 in a gentle way and take in a very full but quick breath in order to keep the energy going and to continue the phrase on time. A vowel change accompanies the interval A to D, with a very slight surge of air. Build to the pivot point, keeping the pivot note full volume for the entire length. A full-value sixteenth precedes a light legato articulation on the grace note in measure 7.
The ability to produce a clean legato (smooth connection) and, consequently, a long unbroken phrase is what makes a singer an artist. In measure 20 of “La Promessa” (Ex.3), a canzonetta by Rossini, the larger intervals of a descending fourth and a sixth need to be connected with a portamento technique of smearing the buzz of the embouchure between the notes. This will result in a seamless movement that is like “liquid” sound. A seamless effect 26 on the larger intervals, in this case the sixths, is facilitated by changing the tongue position within the mouth to produce a change in vowels.
Ex. 3. Rossini, “La Promessa,” mm. 20-21
From the E to the G#, the vowel change would be ee-ah and from the A to the E (end of measure 21) the vowel change would be “ah-oh.”
Rossini’s “La Promessa,” contains a more angular musical line leading up to the pivot point of the phrase in measures 31 through 35 (Ex.4).
Ex. 4. Rossini, “La Promessa,” mm. 31-35
Since the notes skip vertically, in order to successfully achieve a liquid sound, the vowels formed inside the oral cavity must change and the portamento glissando effect of the buzz is necessary. In order to lead smoothly up to the pivot point on beat one of measure 34, it is helpful to approach the preceding vertical beats with tiered dynamics. The first beat of measure 33 is mezzo piano, the second beat is mezzo forte, and finally the first beat of measure 34 is forte. In addition to the tiered dynamics, adjusting the vowel formation inside 27 of the oral cavity helps to maintain an even tone and improve accuracy. In this case, measures
33-34 would be syllabized: “dah-oh, dah-oh – dee –doh-ah.” Consistent breath support throughout these measures provides foundation for the sustained lyrical approach to the balanced phrase.
After gaining a very full breath, one must approach a phrase with a horizontal forward movement, leading with intensity through each note to the pivot point in the phrase.
From measure 8 in “Casta Diva,” (Ex.5) the intensity of the phrase builds up to the pivot point on the first beat of measure 9. It is very important to leave no space whatsoever between the notes.
Ex. 5. Bellini, Norma, “Casta Diva,” mm. 8-13
It is helpful to imagine the notes to be sticky and yet pulling forward, in the manner of taffy being pulled. Maintain a full sound and intensity on the pivot note and continue flowing forward with the air while diminishing in sound, continue with intensity to complete the phrase 2 beats later. One must play the phrase from measure 11 to 12 in the manner of a sigh: a short build up and a long finish. A vowel change “ah-oh” from the A down to the D at the end of measure 11 facilitates the seamless flow of sound. The notes following the pivot point 28 remain intense, but dissolve forward (maintaining air flow while tapering) with the air achieving a graceful note ending and release. Sources
Barra, Donald. The Dynamic Performance : A Performer's Guide to Musical Expression and Interpretation. Foreward by Yehudi Menuhin. Englewood Cliffs, N.J. : Prentice-Hall, 1983.
Bailey, Wayne; William Stanley, Thomas Stein, Alan Siebert, Patrick Miles. Teaching Brass: A Resource Manual. Columbus, OH: McGraw-Hill, 1992.
Beauchamp, Malcolm Eugene. The Application of Bel Canto Concepts and Principles to Trumpet Pedagogy and Performance. Ph.D. diss., The Louisiana State University and Agricultural And Mechanical College, 1980.
Betts, James E. A Comprehensive Performance Project in Horn Literature with an Essay Consisting of Concepts of Horn Technique as Expressed in Selected Instructional Materials for Horn Dating from 1798 to 1960. D.M.A. diss., University of Iowa, 1984.
Burton, Gregory J. “Teaching Beginning Brass Players: A Singing Approach.” [article online] Accessed 30 October 2004. Available from: http://hrsbstaff.ednet.ns.ca/fergusm6/tips/ conductors/teaching%20beg%20brass.htm
Ceccarossi, Domenico. “Phrasing.” The Horn Call. No. 1 (Nov. 1976) 53.
Chambers, J. “Horn Tone and Technique.” Woodwind World 4, no. 6 (1962) 11-12.
Clippinger, D. A. The Clippinger Class-Method of Voice Culture. Bryn Mawr, PA: Oliver Ditson Company (Theodore Presser), 1932.
Coar, Birchard. A Critical Study of the Nineteenth Century Horn Virtuosi in France. De Kalb, IL: B. Coar, 1952.
Coar, Birchard. The French Horn. Ann Arbor, MI: Edwards Brothers, 1947.
Collins, John C. “Singing: A Comparative Analysis.” NATS [National Association of Teachers of Singing] Bulletin, USA Vol. XXV/3, 4 (February, May 1969) 32-37; 12-19.
Comelek, Barbara Kay Zumwalt. Allusions to the Vocal Art in Selected Wind Instrument Pedagogical Sources (Brass, Woodwind). D.A. diss., Ball State University, 1985.
29 30
Damoreau, Laure-Cinthie. Classic Bel Canto Technique. New English Translation and Introduction by Victor Rangel-Ribeiro. Milano: G. Ricordi & Co., 1849. Reprint, Mineola NY: Dover Publications, Inc., 1997.
Dauprat, Louis-Francois. Method for Cor Alto and Cor Basse. (Complete English translation of the first edition published by Zetter, Paris, ca. 1824). Edited by Viola Roth. Bloomington, IN: Birdalone Music, 1994.
Davis. Charles. “Bel Canto and Brass Playing.” [article online] From The Brass Player (Summer 1994). Accessed 30 October 2004. Available from: http:// www.charlescolin.com/nybc/belcanto.htm
Decker, James. The Master Series for Horn.
Dogantan, Mine. Mathis Lussy’s Theory of Rhythm as a Basis for a Theory of Expressive Performance (Switzerland). Ph.D. diss., Columbia University, 1997.
Farkas, Philip. The Art of Brass Playing : A Treatise on the Formation and Use of the Brass Player's Embouchure. Rochester, N.Y. : Wind Music, Inc., 1989.
Farkas, Philip. The Art of French Horn Playing: A Treatise on the Problems and Techniques of French Horn Playing. Evanston, Il. : Summy-Birchard, 1956.
Farkas, Philip. The Art of Musicianship. Rochester, NY: Wind Music, Inc., 1976.
Faulkner, Maurice. “Horn Artistry and Vibrato.” The Instrumentalist 36 (Mar. 1982) 74.
Fox, Fred. Essentials of Brass Playing : An Explicit, Logical Approach to Important Basic Factors that Contribute to Superior Brass Instrument Performance. Los Angeles: Fox, 1974.
Franz, Oscar. Complete Method for the French Horn. English text by Gustav Saenger. New York: Carl Fischer, n.d.
Gehner, Robert. “Acquiring Air Stream Control in French Horn Performance.” NACWPI Journal. Vol. 29, no. 3 (May 1981) 14-21.
Gerstein, Christine W. “Early musical Training in Bel Canto Vocal Technique: A Brief History and Philosophy.” Paper prepared for the Hofstra University library, 1994, ERIC doc. ED 393758. 31
Gregory, Robin. The Horn; a Comprehensive Guide to the Modern Instrument and its Music. Revised and enlarged Edition. New York, F. A. Praeger, 1969.
Haddad, D. “To Sound Like a Horn Player.” The Instrumentalist. Vol. 22 (Feb. 1968) 57.
Hays, David. The Messa Di Voce as an Ornament in the String Playing of the Seventeenth, Eighteenth and Nineteenth Centuries. D.M. diss., Northwestern University, 2000.
Hill, Douglas. Collected Thoughts on Teaching and Learning, Creativity and Horn Performance. Miami, FL: Warner Brothers Publications, 2001.
Hill, Douglas. Extended Techniques for the Horn, A Practical Handbook for Students, Performers and Composer. Miami, FL: Warner Brothers Publications, 1983.
Hoss, Wendell. “Musical Building Blocks [in excerpts for the horn].” The Horn Call. Vol. 3, no. 2 (May 1973) 26-27.
Howe, Marvin C. Method for the French horn. New York, Remick Music Corp., 1950.
Howe, Marvin C. A Critical Survey of Literature, Materials, Opinions, and Practices Related to Teaching the French Horn. Ph.D. diss., University of Iowa, 1966.
Howe, Marvin C. Studies for the Advancing Hornist, Vol. 1: The Singing Hornist. Traverse City, MI: Arline Howe, 2001.
Hsu, Yun-Pai. “Going Through a ‘Phrase’: Developing Musicality in Young Piano Students by Singing.” The American Music Teacher. Vol. 49, no. 5 (April/May 2000) 30-32.
Janetzky, Kurt and Bernhard Brüchle. The Horn. Translated by James Chater. Portland, Or.: Amadeus Press, 1988.
Johnson, Christopher. “Musicians and Nonmusicians Assessment of Perceived Rubato in Musical Performance.” Journal of Research in Music Education. Vol. 44 (Spring 1996), 84-96.
Johnson, Christopher. Musicians and Nonmusicians Assessment of Perceived Rubato in Musical Performance. Ph.D. diss., Florida State University, 1992.
Johnson, Keith. Brass Performance and Pedagogy. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall, 2002. 32
Juslin, Patrick N. “The Five Facets of Musical Expression: A Psychologist's Perspective on Music Performance.” Psychology of music. Vol. 31, no.3 (July 2003), 273-302.
Kaplan, Burton. “Musical Expression Motivates: Integrating Technique and Musical Expression from the Start.” The American Music Teacher. Vol. 53, no. 2 (Oct./Nov. 2003) 31-32.
Lanzky-Otto, Ib. “Is a Beautiful Horn Sound Really of Any Importance?” The Horn Call. Vol. 10, no. 2 (April 1980) 35-37.
Leuba, Christopher. “A Centered Tone.” The Instrumentalist. Vol. 36 (July 1982) 68-69.
Leuba, Christopher. “Horn Vibrato Response.” Woodwind World—Brass and Percussion. Vol. 19, no. 5 (1980) 12-14.
Marchesi, Mathilde. Bel Canto: A Theoretical and Practical Vocal Method. N.d. Reprint, New York: Dover Publications Inc., 1970.
McGill, David. Sound in Motion: A Performer’s Guide to Greater Musical Expression. Bloomington: Indiana University Press, 2007.
Morley-Pegge, R. The French Horn; Some Notes on the Evolution of the Instrument and of its Technique. Second edition. London: E. Benn; New York: W. W. Norton, 1973.
Murray, T.W. “Pursuing the Ideal Horn Tone.” The Instrumentalist. Vol. 31 (October 1976) 58-59.
Nadaf, G. “Making Music with the Horn.” The School Musician. Vol. 43 (August/September 1971) 30.
Pherigo, Johnny Lee. A Critical Survey of Materials and Practices Related to Teaching the Horn, 1965-1985. DMA diss., University of Illinois, 1986.
Pruzin, R.S. “Legato Style for the French Horn.” Brass and Percussion. Vol. 2, no. 5 (1974) 10-11.
Reid. Cornelius L. Bel Canto Principles and Practices. New York: Coleman-Ross Company, Inc., 1950.
Reynolds, Verne. The Horn Handbook. Portland, Or.: Amadeus Press, 1997. 33
Saxton, S. Earl. “Singing on the Horn.” Horn Call. Vol. XXX, no. 4 (August, 2000) 59-63.
Schuller, Gunther. Horn Technique. 2nd ed. Oxford; New York: Oxford University Press, 1992.
Shelton, Laurie S. “Singing on the Horn: A Selective Survey of Chamber Music for Voice, Horn, and Keyboard.” Journal of Singing. Vol. 54, no.3 (Jan-Feb 1998.) 25-39.
Simpson, Peter. “Teaching Musical Expression.” NACWPI Journal. vol. 48, no.4 summer 2000. 4-6
Stark, James. Bel Canto: A History of Vocal Pedagogy. Toronto: University of Toronto Press, 1999.
Stevens, Paul William. Bowings for Brass: A Visualization Tool for Horn Players. D.M.A. diss., University of California, Los Angeles, 2000.
Swanwick, Keith. Teaching Music Musically. New York: Routledge, 1999.
Tabuteau, Marcel. Lessons: His Own Explanations and Demonstrations of his Phrasing System. Boston Records BR1017CD.
Thompson, Virginia M. Weichman. A Comprehensive Performance Project in Horn Literature with an Essay Consisting of a Comparison of Selected Writings on Melodic Interpretation. D.M. diss., University of Iowa, 1987.
Thurmond, James Morgan. Note Grouping : A Method for Achieving Expression and Style in Musical Performance. Foreward by Weston H. Noble. Camp Hill, PA: JMT Publications, 1982.
Trongone, Joseph A. “Breath Control for Horn Players.” Music Educators Journal. Vol. 34 (February 1948) 40.
Tuckwell, Barry. Horn. New York : Schirmer Books, 1983.
Vennard, William. Developing Voices. New York: Carl Fischer, Inc., 1973.
Vennard, Williams. Singing: the Mechanism and the Technic. Revised Edition. New York: Carl Fischer, Inc., 1967. 34
Wekre, Frøydis Ree. Thoughts on Playing the Horn Well. Oslo, Norway: Frøydis Ree Wekre, 1994. Whitlock, Weldon. Bel Canto for the Twentieth Century. Champaign, IL: Pro Musica Press, 1968.
Winter, James. H. “Concerning the ‘Ring’ in Horn Tone.” Woodwind World. Vol. 5, no. 5 (1964) 5.
Winter, James. H. “The Tone of the Horn.” Woodwind World. Vol. 2 (October 1958) 14-15.
Yancich, Milan. A Practical Guide to French Horn Playing. Bloomington, Ind., Wind Music, 1971.