A couple months ago, our dear violinist, Tommy Atkinson, told us some happy news: he had finally landed a full-time teaching position at a charter school, where he could make use of his music education degree! The flip-side to this news was that the position was located in El Paso, Texas and that he'd be leaving in a couple weeks time, in time for the new school year to start.

While Brad and I were really excited for Tommy, we were sad to lose a gem of a violinist, musician, and friend from the trio--a like-minded individual who would be willing to rehearse, every week, without pay, for the sake of music and self-improvement. We knew we would be hard-pressed to replace Tommy, and in the last few months, this has indeed proven true.

In the meantime, Brad and I have been working on some horn-piano duo repertoire. We are aiming to be able to present them late January sometime! We continue to follow Tommy's happy status updates (in Facebook) from Burnham Wood Charter School; and if there are any violinists who would like to work with an annoyingly blunt and critical pianist and a patient, observant hornist par excellence... the contact button is right there ;)

Today was the last masterclass of the Natural Horn Workshop, here at Indiana University Bloomington. We had breakfast with Jonathan Stoneman (UK) and Ron Burdick (CA) at the Copper Cup and headed over to Ford Hall.

Stoneman was up first and played the first movement of the Weber Concertino. There were some nasty low multiphonics at the end of it; Manganaro (GER) demonstrated it and blasted those notes out of the water. Crazy loud. Rachel and Chris (NC) played their Dauprat (?) duet (with our accompanist, Ken Chan, on fortepiano), which is a really sweet (in the dolce sense) piece; Professor Seraphinoff was curious about the piece, so he took Rachel's place and sight-read through it once for fun. His control over tone production is stunning. Later, Seraphinoff and Manganaro sight-read the piece together.

Yoni (MA) played one of the Gallay (?) Etude Brillantes. Crazy chromatic piece. I wish I had enough battery to have taped the entirety of the performance and discussion. He hit all the notes during the performance, but when he played it after Seraphinoff advised him on a few technical aspects, the notes became much more substantial and clear.

Our trio played Brahms' Scherzo for the masterclass. Compared to when we played it in the beginning of the week... it flowed better--the momentum was maintained better. I daresay some of the phrasing on Brad and Tommy's parts was slightly more interesting too. Unfortunately, it was more messy on my part, since I was focusing on incorporating things that Auer had suggested (new fingerings... so notes missing everywhere).

After masterclass, everyone hung around for a little bit saying good-bye. We went to lunch at Mother Bear's with Manganaro and Chuta Chulavalaivong (MA), where we sadly had to cut shortish because we had one last coaching at 1:30PM with Reiko Neriki.

I was looking forward to this coaching, since all the e-mail exchange with Professor Neriki was very friendly. Her bio had showed her passion for chamber music (apparently she won best accompanist at the Tchaikovsky Violin Competition), and that she had worked with Janos Starker--with whom I had been hoping to arrange a coaching.

The coaching was wonderful. She was direct, but respectful, and full of useful advice. She took the time to demonstrate what I should be doing (how I should be practicing certain passages), and furthermore, took the time to listen to me attempt it with the new perspective. Both she and Auer underscored the main problem with my piano playing--that musically, I have the right idea, but in the technical realm, I am weak at getting it out to the audience.

However, she touched upon all sorts of technical things, which in the back of my mind all these years I knew that Someone should be advising me about; she knows the physical aspects of piano playing from general posture down to the fingertips--and knows enough about it to articulate everything clearly.

I think I'm in love. I would really like to do a master's here in which I focus on technical progress and have her clean up my bad habits.

Professor Neriki coached us for about an hour and a half and I know with specificity what my next tasks are and moreover--HOW to work on my next tasks. Thank god for good teachers, who are also conscientious.

Brad and Tommy have embarked on their 11 hour journey back to Maryland. I will be catching a taxi at 4AM tomorrow to get to the airport.

--Ning

Well, Friday has arrived, the day of the End of the workshop concert and party!

This trip has really been phenomenal.  I have been challenged as a musician every day, and come away with all sorts of ideas on where to
go from here as a natural hornist.  The Trio played the Telemann Concerto A Tre for the studio class this morning, and Rick had lots of
great ideas of how to improve the style and phrasing.  Tommy played it on a baroque bow, and the tone and nuance were dramatically better.  I am quickly learning that most of us learn baroque music incorrectly and stiffly.  It should be fluid and beautiful at all times.  The first time I came to this workshop two years ago, I was focused entirely on hand technique, it has been awesome to forget about hand technique and focus entirely on musicality and contrast.  I really feel like the trio is taking everything it the next level.

The afternoon class featured the horns playing a variety of quartets and trios for horns in different keys.  This was a great deal of fun, especially since we have some awesome players here.  The sightreading was impeccable!  We finished with some Dauprat Quartets, and at this point we all agree that Dauprat was just a phenomenal composer of music, not just horn music.

At the end of the day we all went Rick's beautiful house out in the middle of the woods and performed our ensemble pieces.  On the program were the complete Dauprat Sextets, a movement from Gallay's Grand Quartet, and a Beethoven Quintet for 3 Horns, oboe, and bassoon.  It was a real treat with roughly an hours worth of music.  After dinner we all went over to Rick's workshop as he showed us what he does. Removing dents, creating a crook (I got to watch him begin the process
of making my G crook!!), and then showed us the many pieces of history in his workshop.  He has original horns from the 1800s scattered all around the workshop.

Special thanks goes to Celeste for a wonderful dinner!

This workshop has been a blast, and tomorrow we will have our last masterclass, followed by a coaching by faculty member Reiko Shigeoka-Neriki. Everyone has been really encouraging about our performances and thinks we are doing great work!  It's so nice to be encouraged and supported.

Brad

Tommy here. I had to write the blog for Thursday. Not had to in the sense that I was obligated to do it (although it is my turn), but I HAD to write this blog because yesterday was so inspiring for me!

We began the day early in Ford hall and played through some Brahms. We decided to work on some of the third movement for the 10am masterclass. We were trying to apply everything that Professor Auer had told us yesterday: finding the musical lines, connecting notes more, and being really specific and careful in our dynamics (particularly at the climax near the end of the movement - I need to remember to come down after my high parts so the audience can really hear Brad). Rehearsal went well and we finished up as people were walking in the room. We then played a pretty successful third movement for the class. Everyone was pretty happy with balance, etc, and I think that it was the best we had ever played it in public before. Rick had some great ideas for us in the movement, especially his idea that the magic in music happens between the notes, in their connections. When I think of connections between notes, it makes the line flow much better, particularly in a slow movement where it is easy to get stuck on each individual note.

After a nice lunch at MAC Mediterranean, I headed over to Professor Ritchie's home in Bloomington to try out some of his Baroque bows. His home was a nice short walk from campus and the weather was great yesterday, so I was happy to have a stroll around town. Professor Ritchie's home was a veritable museum on the evolution of the violin. He had several fine Baroque instruments, one of which may have belonged to Bach! There is no way of knowing for sure, but this particular violin was the same maker that Bach listed in his possessions. After a little bit of "shop talk" (talking about chinrests, shoulder rests, strings, et. al.) we got to the good stuff. Professor Ritchie has several Baroque bows that he doesn't actively concertize on anymore, so he let me borrow 4 of them for the rest of the week! I got a brief instruction on the mechanics of the bows (aka. don't overtighten them!) and adjusted my bow hold. Then I was off to the practice rooms to try them out.

Now, I've never played a Baroque bow before. Ever. So, the first thing I played was an excerpt from the Telemann Concerto a Tré, one of the pieces we're planning to perform in the last masterclass. It made so much sense! The phrasing is easier and notes are much easier to begin. There isn't much articulation possible with the different curvature of the stick and thinner hair, so I never get that infamous crunch at the beginnings of notes. Chords are also much easier to break and voice how I want them. Long story short, I want one!!

After a bit of practicing we went to a nice sushi dinner at Ami, where I ordered Bulgogi, a beef dish that's a bit reminiscent of a Korean barbecue and a spicy tuna roll. Then we met the rest of the workshop participants at Bears where we watched a crazy game 2 of the NBA finals and some videos that Paul took while skydiving! Apparently, he has done over 1200 jumps and over the summer as a part time job, he films first time jumpers. It's incredible!

Tommy

9AM, coaching with Rick Seraphinoff in Ford Hall--we went over the Brahms, second movement (Scherzo). Yoni was kind enough to wake up early to turn pages for me so the rehearsal could go smoothly. Seraphinoff gave some ensemble tips and some technical advice to Brad. Again, he brought up what seems to be what sticks out as the biggest problem for our playing--phrasing and direction.

Between 11AM-5PM was individual practice for Tommy and me, with a break in between for lunch at Mother Bear's with Manganaro and Brad. Brad had a lesson with Manganaro and worked a bunch on the slow movement of the Brahms.

At 5PM we went to Edward Auer's studio to play for him. We played the slow movement first, which seemed to go over well; Auer complimented us on our ensemble, and was excited to hear the trio done with the natural horn. He spent a while going over phrasing and aesthetics on the piece. He also had plenty to say about the piano part (of course), corrected my phrasing in the beginning (where Stanley Ritchie had told me to 'put space between the phrases'), and other various technical details which I won't bore you readers with here.

Then we played the Scherzo for him. And it was plainly obvious (I have been saying this all along) that my technical facilities on my instrument are not as proficient as Tommy or Brad's on theirs. So, Auer was fairly direct about getting the notes under my fingers more, and suggested some fingerings that would lead to smoother phrasing on my part.

After that, Tommy and I sat in on Brad's Dauprat Sextet rehearsal. It's a really cool piece, and in general, everyone seems to be holding their own on their parts despite everyone's complaints that it's a very hard piece. Paul is playing the a high part (Brad could tell you what specific part he's on, I have no clue, but that it is very high) and it is amusing watching his face turn bright red and his eyes bug out when he is playing high tessitura stuff.

At 8pm, I went to see the IU Faculty's Jazz Concert in Auer Hall. Seraphinoff's wife, Celeste, was playing horn in it. The concert was 'Birth of the Cool', featuring the songs on the album of the same name, though not in the same order. They also threw in some extra pieces that were not mentioned on the program. They also introduced almost each piece with some brief history about it.

When that was finished (around 9:30PM), I nabbed Paul (who also went to see the concert along with Yoni--they must have skipped out of Dauprat rehearsal early) and we met up with Manganaro, Brad, and Tommy at Father Bear's. As seems to be the par there, the food was ehn, and service even more ehn. I can't believe we've been there 3 times already; mostly because of the convenience of it's location to the music school and the availability of the local microbrews.

More stuff to do tomorrow! For now sleep. And I feel myself getting a sore throat and possibly coming down with something.

--Ning

Tuesday was another wonderful day of rehearsals, discussions, and practicing for the group.  We began the day working on the Brahms Trio Scherzo.  All of our coachings have stressed the importance of exaggerating the phrasing so that it is clear to the audience and we spent that time in the morning finding the right places to do just that.  At the end of this rehearsal we also spent time counting measures(probably should have done that a long time ago).

The morning's masterclass featured works by Mozart and Cherubini.  We did not play on this one, but I found it very informative.  Watching Rick work with each player and also listen to the natural horns from the back of the hall showed me how easily the articulations can be buried in the low range of the horn, particularly when playing with a modern piano.

We had lunch at a Chinese/Japanese restaurant across the street and then came back over to practice individually for a while.  Thanks to the many activities between the workshop and the trio, this was
actually my first opportunity to sit and practice on my own.  I used it to grow more comfortable with the G crook, the primary crook I play on in our Dauprat Sextet group.  I cannot recommend these pieces highly enough to everyone!  Dauprat, horn professor at the Paris Conservatory, wrote this Grand Sextet for horns in different keys. This creates a veritable orchestra of horns with each hornist playing in a different tone color, using different stopped notes from those around them, and playing chromatic music that would have been unimaginable without this technique.

After my practice session we had a baroque horn lecture/discussion. The discussion became quite lively thanks to the inauthentic practice of using ventholes to correct intonation.  I believe John Manganaro and Rick summed it up best when they said that they choose to play with the hand outside the bell and use ventholes in order to maintain an authentic sound.  The fact of the issue is that modern listeners have such highly trained ears that playing out of tune and still finding work would never happen in a modern era, therefore, using ventholes allows us to continue to find performances and provide the distinctive sound that comes from having the bell up in the air.

Opus 40 then spent the afternoon listening to recordings from our previous practice sessions and coachings.  This was productive, we were able to identify a variety of issues in balance, phrasing, and intonation, but it was also encouraging to hear how far we have come since we first began working together.

That evening the horns gathered for our Dauprat Sextet rehearsal and then headed out to dinner at Upland where they have a delicious buffalo burger.  I highly recommend it, especially with the sweet
habanero sauce I got with it last night.  Then it was time for bed. It doesn't get dark here until 10 PM in the summer because despite how far west it is, Indiana is still on Eastern time.  Talk about a long day!

Thanks for reading these blogs, I hope they are enlightening.

Brad

Today was the first official day of the workshop, and we were on the program for the first masterclass of the week. We had an early morning rehearsal in Ford Hall at 8:30am so we could make registration at 9:30. Fortunately for us, John was in the hall and gave us a brief, impromptu coaching on the Duvernoy trio. 

The performance of Duvernoy was well received, and Rick gave us (particularly Brad) some feedback on horn technique. He mentioned entrances on a natural horn mouthpiece versus a valve horn mouthpiece, intonation, and other ensemble techniques.

Afterwards, Ning and I had some individual practice time while Brad and the other hornists played etudes together. It was nice to have some individual time on the Brahms trio, which we would later play for Professor Ritchie. However, the IU practice rooms leave much to be desired! They are functional, but certainly not glamorous: just an old piano, a chair or two, and a music stand, if you're lucky!

Afterwards, we went to lunch with the other workshop participants at MAC, a little Mediterranean restaurant just off campus. Great hummus and a fantastic grilled chicken Mediterranean salad! It was nice to meet everyone at the workshop: a great mix of people from all over the country and  Jonathan, who is from the UK!

After a few more hours of practice time while Brad was in class, we all convened in Ford Hall for our coaching with Professor Stanley Ritchie, former assistant concertmaster of the Met and professor of Baroque violin at IU. Needless to say, I was really excited for this coaching. We started out with the 3rd and 4th movements of Brahms and got some great advice. Prof. Ritchie was especially picky in the opening of the 3rd movement, working Ning really hard in its character and phrasing. It sounds the best it ever has! For me, he worked a lot on my bow technique, claiming that the 3 bar bowing in the middle of the movement is possible. Time to practice long, slow bows! 

Then we worked on the Telemann Concerto a tré, where Prof. Ritchie's expertise in Baroque music and performance practice really shined. It was our first time playing with harpsichord in 415 pitch, much different than our recent performance at St. Andrew's in Annapolis. He had some great advice for me in particular. He really helped my phrasing (it was initially too "beaty") and gave some fingering advice. One quote that I don't think I'll soon forget is, "All music is in 1."

Now, time for bed! We want to be in Ford Hall by 8:30 am to do some rehearsing before the horn masterclass at 10.

Tommy

After 11 hours of travelling, we all made it yesterday to IU-Bloomington--Tommy and Brad by car, and myself via a series of delayed planes. We are rooming in Willkie Hall. Apparently IUB is a dry campus, but I did not realize this and had brought Dragonfly IPA from a local microbrewery into our fridgeless residence hall to celebrate everyone's safe arrival.

This morning our rehearsing started promptly at 10am in Auer Hall in the Simon Music Building. Brad was working on 4 hours of sleep since he was unable to fall asleep until 4:30am. We stopped by the Copper Pot--a cute coffee shop--to buy some wakeups for Brad on our way to practice. Luckily for us, we ran into John Manganaro who had also arrived early to the workshop, so he stopped by to listen to us rehearse and give us feedback.

We played Duvernoy 3 and Brahms mvmt 1 for him. His main points: do more with phrasing and dynamics in Duvernoy, really go opera buffa on it. Figure out conversations between instruments. Be aware of balance issues; given that Brad is on a period instrument while Tommy and I are on modern instruments with much more power. In Brahms, be aware of the underlying metronome-like part in the piano--more listening from the melodic parts in order to mesh better, esp. at rehearsal mark A.

We all broke for lunch at Mamma Bear's, which has excellent pizza. After a brief respite during which Brad caught a much needed 40-minute nap, we headed over to Merill Hall at 3pm for coaching with Professor Rick Seraphinoff (who heads the natural horn workshop) who also provided many insights into our ensemble.

His remarks concerning Duvernoy 3 included not following strict rhythm (which Manganaro also touched upon as well), and to just 'feel' the pulse in order to stay together esp. concerning the horn part (which I imagine naturally wants to lag behind a smidge since its response time involves the passage of air, and not just pure muscle reflexes like in the violin and piano parts). We managed to play Duvernoy on the fortepiano in Ford Hall, where our masterclasses are to be held. Intonation was not perfect (as can be expected), but Seraphinoff seemed pleased by how quickly Tommy and Brad were adapting to the 'correct' pitches. It was my first time playing at length on a fortepiano, and while fast passages seemed to fly out easily from my fingers, they seemed to fly out Too easily; if I dared to think about a note, it seemed to play on its own. The shallow keydip contributed to fleet fingers, but also left me feeling powerless. I am still left wondering how much dynamic range I can possibly get out of the instrument, and if it is even worth bothering to think about.

For Brahms mvmt 1, we returned to Seraphinoff's studio, and stopped almost after every rehearsal mark to discuss issues. Beginning to A, Seraphinoff pointed out the awkward silences that ensued at times from the middle of my two-note slurs. He also remarked that he liked Tommy's phrasing, and commented to Brad that they could work on getting the horn part to mimic the swells from Tommy's opening lines. A-B, Seraphinoff seemed to approach the rhythm issues there from the opposite of Manganaro/opposite of how the three of us had until now approached the problem--he said to not keep strict time, and to not pay attention to the piano part--that Tommy and Brad had to take the lead and lay down the bigger picture and that I had to follow and fit my part into theirs. This seemed to be the main issue that we touched on during Seraphinoff's coaching--when to take the lead and when to follow.

After 4:30pm--where Seraphinoff had to rush off to pick up a natural horn for the upcoming week, and to make one for a person flying in from Venezuela--the three of us went to rehearse the two pieces a bit more in Auer Hall and Ford Hall. When our attention span and discipline were fully depleted, we went to dinner at Lennie's--home of Bloomington Brewery--and met up with Paul Hopkins (another horn player from Maryland) who also arrived after 11 hours of driving.

Hopefully we shall get a full night's sleep. Tomorrow: workshop begins, more practicing, playing Duvernoy 3/Brahms mvmt 1 for masterclass, coaching with Stanley Ritchie!

--Ning

Now that I've (sadly) left PianoCraft, I can be dedicated full-time to the trio, teaching, and performing; we have enough time to launch our official website!

Currently, we are looking forward to travelling together to Indiana University at Bloomington this June for the natural horn workshop. Brad will be playing natural horn for hours on end each day, and the trio is slated to get at least one coaching per day from professors at IU.

Please use the contact page to say hi, give feedback on performances, or request a performance at your venue!

--Ning