The Art of French Horn Playing (The Art of Series)

This is one of THE classic tomes for French Horn playing. I found the embouchure tips quite helpful.

Doesn't matter if you're a beginner, intermediate horn player, or an expert everyone can benefit from reading this book. Is it outdated? Sure, maybe a little, but this is still the 'bible' of horn playing and a must read. This book has helpful information regarding pretty much all aspects of horn playing: types of horns, practicing information, types of mouthpieces, mechanics of the horn, practicing techniques, hand positions and placements, tuning, warm-ups, diagrams, embouchure, performance etiquette and tips, breathing, just general pointers and other miscellaneous, virtually everything! This is a great book for any horn player to reference or refer to. I constantly finding myself going back and re-reading sections whenever I have a question or a problem arises. This book really teaches you and helps you become a better horn player. The pictures and diagrams in the book are super helpful so you can get a visual of what your supposed to be doing and correct any bad habits or mistakes you may be making. In addition to all the information this book has I love that it also includes a section of warmups to practice. I would definitely recommend practicing these warmups everyday for at least 10 minutes, although I would do them for about 30 minutes, and you'll see almost instantly an improvement in your range, and your tone, your ability in moving your fingers, your overall quality of playing, and even your sight reading! If there's one book you buy for your instrument I suggest and encourage it be this one. Life changing for a French horn player.

I’ve been playing other instruments for almost two decades, and recently I started to teach myself to play the French horn. This book is super helpful. It does not have a lot of etudes in it, but it covers every aspect of horn playing I can think of (choosing an instrument, embouchure, tonguing, to name a few). It’s a great supplement to many other method books, which focus heavily on etudes with little to none explanations.

This book is older but incredibly helpful for basics. It was shipped promptly and carefully. The book was in really great condition.

This has been one of my favorite books of instruction for over forty years. I took a copy to Seoul Korea when I was stationed there in 1971 with the Eighth Army Band, but when I played a few concerts with the Seoul Sinfonietta I gave that copy to the first horn player in that chamber group. My little contribution to international good will. So I was without that book for many years, until my interest in playing the horn resurfaced, and then I was pleased to find it published in a smaller format, suitable for carrying around with other music. Mr. Farkas was a very good man, and a meticulous player and teacher. He could be accused of occasionally "overthinking" (such as where he gets a little obsessive about too much pressure and recommends trying to play the horn without using your hands as it sits on a slippery surface), but the foundations of his instruction are solid. As my ability increases, I am still now finding little jewels in his book that, with a more mature perspective and increased understanding, help me to develop even further.

My college horn teacher subscribed very much to the Farkas methods provided here, so I had a good foundation as a horn player. But I wish he had made this required reading so I would have had this years ago. It is a goldmine, and Farkas is very reasonable and logical in his approach. Some of what you will read by horn enthusiasts will lead you on a journey of trying new mouthpieces and experimenting with new horns and in several configurations, if you are a serious player. Farkas has it right, though. None one instrument or one mouthpiece will do it all perfectly. It, therefore, only makes sense to choose a good compromise (whether in regards to a horn, mouthpiece, or tuning position) and make the player do the rest with his/her ear and embouchure. If you are looking for common sense, and clear explanations, this book is a must (acknowledging that it could use an update...as for example, neoprene horn stops have made cork from a bottle of champagne an unnecessary recommendation) have.

Everything you need to learn to play or refresh your skill.

This very comprehensive book, in work book form, contains everything anyone would ever want to know about the French Horn, from its colorful lore and history, to its physical characteristics, evolution, capabilities and limitations. It is interesting to contemplate that some of the most difficult of music written for the French Horn were written in past centuries by composers like Mozart and Bach, at a time when the French hornist had to accomplish all the trills, arpeggios and intervals with manipulations of his lips, the addition of valves being a relatively recent innovation. The student of the French horn is at once enveloped by the text of this excellent book, into the world of the French horn, and is left with the aura of being a part of a very special and select community. I bought this book for my grand daughter who is in her second year of playing the French horn.

I recently started playing my French Horn again last year having had lessons with a teacher at school 20 years ago. I was only ever taught the Bb Horn and used the F side purely for hand stopping - I don't think my teacher knew any better. This book has been fantastic in taking my horn playing to a new level. I'm now able to successfully combine both the Bb and F sides of the instrument based on the instruction in this book. The tips on range are superb and have been a huge help in my efforts to build a more secure upper range to top C.I always had a problem getting volume out of the mid-range of the instrument (around "middle C") - mezzo forte at best. I had assumed that this was just a weakness in my particular instrument but Farkas' book explained that this is a common problem and contains helpful exercises to overcome this weakness.The book gave me an explanation as to why we need to transpose *down* a half tone when hand stopping (because hand stopping effectively shortens the instrument, raising the pitch). This always seemed counter intuitive to me seeing as closing off the bell seems to lower rather than raise the pitch of the instrument. The book even explains why this can only be done on the F horn.I continuously refer back to this book and it has highlighted to me the poor quality peripatetic teaching I received at school (I had no idea lip trills existed before reading the book). Had I known all this 20 years ago I would probably have kept up my playing. This book should come with every horn sold everywhere.[The only thing missing from this book is a chapter on all the different horn configurations and wraps that are available (descant, geyer, double, single, compensating, kruspe, etc) - but you can forgive Farkas for that since there have been developments in the instrument since the book was written.]

As expected good hints and techniques to practice

Ich bin Anfängerin auf dem Horn mit all den Fragen und Unsicherheiten, die da manchmal aufkommen. Im Unterricht ist nicht immer Gelegenheit, jede theoretische Frage zu erörtern. Insofern bin ich froh, immer wieder auf dieses Buch zurückgreifen und Anregungen und Erläuterungen nachlesen zu können.Und stilistisch schön geschrieben ist es auch ;-)

Quite technically difficult, but offers a lot of insight into embouchure.

Se los recomiendo a todos principiantes y expertos