If you have small hands, you can work out alternate fingerings for playing stopped notes in tune experimenting with the Bb and F sides of your horn. Sometimes it's impossible to place a stop mute fast enough. For me with very small hands, a stop mute is a necessity. There was an article in The Horn Call that said most pros have transposing stop mutes because the directors like the uniform tone they produce better than hand stopping. Even if you have large hands, it's recommended that you have a stopped mute because the sound is crispier, buzzier & less taxing to produce. (2) A transposing stop mute (you transpose down a half step and only play on the F side of your horn) is usually made of brass & has a little tube and tiny bell sticking out the end. More expensive doesn't necessarily mean better. Like someone said above, you really only need two mutes - (1) a non transposing straight mute which come in a variety of shapes, sizes, materials and prices. (Yes, I saw straight mute for sale for $1,000.00 - and it was used). Then play with other peoples mutes and see what you like before you start investing $100, $300, or even $1,000.00 for a mute. I prefer to hand stop, but when I do use a stopped mute I use a Best Brass Non-Transposing one (no it's not cheating). Later you can invest in the more expensive ones. You should learn to play on the standard stopped mute and transpose your part. As a student I suggest staying away from the non-transposiing stopped mutes. They should be used only for longer passages. Stopped mutes - same story get an inexpensive one at first. I like them so much I have purchased several. My prefence however is the Ion Balu straight mute. As stated above in the previous statement I am most happy with wooden straight mutes. When you are ready to move up and make the investment then get a good tunable mute. It was non-tunable and served me very well for 26 years until I left it behind at gig. My favorite inexpensive mute was a Miraphone fibre mute. The disadvantage is the mute is not tunable (but you can file the corks for the best fit and play with pulling the mute out just a little bit to adjust pitch when needed - which is good practice). Also, one day you are going to be distracted at a rehearsal or concert and you are going to leave the mute behind and never find it again. The reason I suggest the Humes & Berg for high school is the mute is going to get kicked around, dropped, tossed, and abused.
It is the least expensive one available and works. If you are in high school I suggest the less expensive Humes & Berg mute. You should learn to play stopped with your hand, and the cup mute is rarely called for and in my opinion not much of a difference in sound from the straight mute to justify the price of one. The one that you really need is the straight mute. There are three basic mutes that are caled for in french horn music straight mute, stopped mute, and cup mute. Of course, it never hurts to have a better one. To the normal mutes: For an intermediate player, this mute will be perfectly OK. For the middle and higher register hand stopping is to be preferred to using a stopping mute.Įdit: My stopping mute is by Tom Crown, not Dennis Wick. However, stopping mutes only makes sense for stopped notes in the lower register, as one can hardly get any sound if stopping low notes by hand. I've got one and I can say that it produces a wonderful warm sound when played softly and a bright, ringing sound when attacked hard.Īs a stopping mute, I use one by Dennis Wick, as do most horn players. However, they are quite expensive (145€ without shipping). The most popular mutes in Germany and most probably the best mutes out there are the ones handmade by Pöltl ( ), a horn player in the SWR Orhestra. I'd suggest getting a tuneable, non-transposing straight mute out of wood. There are normal mutes and stopping mutes. Generally, there're only two sorts of mutes you may need.
0 kommentar(er)
