This list of horn players and pedagogues includes notable players of

French horn The French horn (since the 1930s known simply as the horn in professional music circles) is a brass instrument made of tubing wrapped into a coil with a flared bell. The double horn in F/B (technically a variety of German horn) is the horn most o ...

, German horn,

natural horn The natural horn is a musical instrument that is the predecessor to the modern-day (French) horn (differentiated by its lack of valves). Throughout the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, the natural horn evolved as a separation from the tr ...

, Vienna horn, tenor (alto) horn, and alphorn.

B

* Radek Baborák, born 1976, former Principal horn Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra, Munich Phil. Orch, Czech Phil. Orch. winner of the ARD, Geneva, Markneukirchen, Concertino Praga Hochschule für Musik Saar. * Andrew Bain, principal horn of the

Los Angeles Philharmonic The Los Angeles Philharmonic (LA Phil) is an American orchestra based in Los Angeles, California. The orchestra holds a regular concert season from October until June at the Walt Disney Concert Hall and a summer season at the Hollywood Bowl from ...

, LA studio player, horn professor at the Colburn School in

Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

, California * Georges Barboteu (1924–2006), Former professor at CNSM, member of the French French-horn school, horn instructor of many current French French hornists * Hermann Baumann (1934–2023), former principal horn Philharmonisches Orchester Dortmund and Stuttgart Radio Symphony Orchestra, winner of the ARD International Music Competition in 1964, soloist, performing on

and valved horn * Richard Bissill, player, composer, arranger and professor * Aubrey Brain, player (1893–1955) *

Dennis Brain Dennis Brain (17 May 19211 September 1957) was a British French horn, horn player. From a musical family – his father and grandfather were horn players – he attended the Royal Academy of Music in London. During the Second World War he served ...

, player (1921–1957) * Arthur C. Brooks, social scientist whose previous profession was horn player * Timothy Brown, principal horn in BBC Symphony Orchestra and Academy of St Martin in the Fields, Melos Ensemble

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* John Cerminaro, principal

New York Philharmonic The New York Philharmonic is an American symphony orchestra based in New York City. Known officially as the ''Philharmonic-Symphony Society of New York, Inc.'', and globally known as the ''New York Philharmonic Orchestra'' (NYPO) or the ''New Yo ...

(1969–79), principal Seattle Symphony 1996–2011 * Alan Civil, second horn

Royal Philharmonic Orchestra The Royal Philharmonic Orchestra (RPO) is a British symphony orchestra based in London, England. The RPO was established by Thomas Beecham in 1946. In its early days, the orchestra secured profitable recording contracts and important engagemen ...

(to

), later principal. In 1955, joined the Philharmonia, and in 1957 became principal horn, after the death of Dennis Brain, principal of BBC Symphony Orchestra from 1966 to 1988 * Dale Clevenger, principal horn of the

Chicago Symphony Orchestra The Chicago Symphony Orchestra (CSO) is an American symphony orchestra based in Chicago, Illinois. Founded by Theodore Thomas in 1891, the ensemble has been based in the Symphony Center since 1904 and plays a summer season at the Ravinia F ...

from 1966 to 2013 * Thomas Coates, hornist with Pomp's Cornet Band, Easton, Pennsylvania (1840s to 1850s) and conductor, regimental band, 47th Pennsylvania Infantry Regiment (1861–82) * Geoff Collinson, principal horn, Australian Opera and Ballet Orchestra

D

* Stefan Dohr, principal horn,

Berlin Philharmonic The Berlin Philharmonic () is a German orchestra based in Berlin. It is one of the most popular, acclaimed and well-respected orchestras in the world. Throughout the 20th century, the orchestra was led by conductors Wilhelm Furtwängler (1922� ...

* Peter Damm, principal horn Dresden Staatskapelle 1969–2002. He is professor of horn at the

Carl Maria von Weber Carl Maria Friedrich Ernst von Weber (5 June 1826) was a German composer, conductor, virtuoso pianist, guitarist, and Music criticism, critic in the early Romantic music, Romantic period. Best known for List of operas by Carl Maria von Weber, h ...

music conservatoire. * Vincent DeRosa, LA studio player * Richard Dunbar, was a player of the French horn, playing in the free jazz scene. He was born in Brooklyn, New York, on May 29, 1944, and he died suddenly at the age of 61, apparently of a heart attack, on the way to a gig on February 8, 2006. * Simon de Souza, professor of horn at the

Birmingham Conservatoire Royal Birmingham Conservatoire is a music school, drama school and concert venue in Birmingham, England. It provides education in music, acting, and related disciplines up to postgraduate level. It is a centre for scholarly research and doct ...

* Vladimir Djambazov, second horn of the Sofia Philharmonic and composer

E

* Pip Eastop, Fellow of the

Royal Academy of Music The Royal Academy of Music (RAM) in London, England, is one of the oldest music schools in the UK, founded in 1822 by John Fane and Nicolas-Charles Bochsa. It received its royal charter in 1830 from King George IV with the support of the firs ...

and former principal horn of the

London Sinfonietta The London Sinfonietta is an English contemporary chamber music, chamber orchestra founded in 1968 and based in London. The ensemble has headquarters at Kings Place and is Resident Orchestra at the Southbank Centre. Since its inaugural concert ...

* John Entwistle, bass player from the Who, also played horn

F

* Philip Farkas, principal

1936–41 and 1947–60, Cleveland Orchestra 1941–45 and 1946–47, Boston Symphony 1945–46, also horn professor at

Indiana University Indiana University (IU) is a state university system, system of Public university, public universities in the U.S. state of Indiana. The system has two core campuses, five regional campuses, and two regional centers under the administration o ...

from 1960 to 1992

G

* Jacques-François Gallay (1795–1864), academic at the Paris Conservatoire * Livia Ruth Gollancz (1920–2018), principal horn of the Hallé, BBC Scottish Orchestra and other UK ensembles during the 1940s-50s * David Guerrier, French trumpeter and hornist, former professor at CNSM of Lyon

H

* Anthony Halstead (horn,

, piano, organ and conductor), exponent of period-instrument performance notably with the Hanover Band * Anton Joseph Hampel, horn player of the 18th century who developed the technique of hand-stopping * Max Hess, Boston Symphony Orchestra 1905–25, Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra 1925–37 * Douglas Hill * Heinrich Hübler

J

* Ifor James * Johann Janatka (1800–1878), academic at Prague Conservatory * Stefan de Leval Jezierski,

* Lin Jiang, Barry Tuckwell Brass Prize winner, principal horn of the Hong Kong Philharmonic Orchestra and Australian World Orchestra.

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* Daniel Katzen, former member of Boston Symphony Orchestra, Associate Professor of Horn at the "University of Arizona School of Music" in Tucson * Felix Klieser, German professional hornist born without arms, operates valves with toes on his left foot * Georg Kopprasch, composer of the ''Kopprasch Etudes'' * Helen Kotas Hirsch, principal horn,

(1941–1948), first female brass musician hired by

* Peter Kurau, principal Rochester Philharmonic and Professor of Horn at the

Eastman School of Music The Eastman School of Music is the music school of the University of Rochester, a private research university in Rochester, New York, United States. Established in 1921 by celebrated industrialist and philanthropist George Eastman, it was the ...

L

* Ludwig Wenzel Lachnith, Bohemian horn player and composer of horn concertos. * Julie Landsman, former Principal Horn, Metropolitan Opera Orchestra (1985–2010), Juilliard faculty since 1989. * Wilhelm Lanzky-Otto * Joseph Leutgeb * Eduard Constantin Lewy (1796–1846), played in the premiere of Beethoven's Symphony No. 9, teacher at the Vienna Conservatory. * Josef Rudolf Lewy (1802–1881), brother of Eduard Constantin Lewy, composer of music for the horn. * Boštjan Lipovšek * Frank Lloyd

M

* Joseph Masella, principal horn of both the

Montreal Symphony Orchestra The Montreal Symphony Orchestra () is a Canadian symphony orchestra based in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. The orchestra’s home is the Montreal Symphony House at Place des Arts. History Several orchestras were precursor ensembles to the curren ...

and the CBC Montreal Orchestra from 1943 to 1969. * Susan McCullough, professor at Lamont School of Music. * Brown Meggs, writer,

Capitol Records Capitol Records, LLC (known legally as Capitol Records, Inc. until 2007), and simply known as Capitol, is an American record label owned by Universal Music Group through its Capitol Music Group imprint. It was founded as the first West Coast-base ...

executive. Wrote a solo horn variation on the Beatles melody "

I Want to Hold Your Hand "I Want to Hold Your Hand" is a song by the English rock music, rock band the Beatles, written by John Lennon and Paul McCartney. Recorded on 17 October 1963 and released on 29 November 1963 in the United Kingdom, it was the first Beatles recor ...

". * Christian Mengis, hornist and composer at the court of

Frederick the Great Frederick II (; 24 January 171217 August 1786) was the monarch of Prussia from 1740 until his death in 1786. He was the last Hohenzollern monarch titled ''King in Prussia'', declaring himself ''King of Prussia'' after annexing Royal Prussia ...

from 1745. * Ethel Merker, prominent horn player in Chicago beginning in the 1940s, design collaborator on the Holton Merker-Matic line of horns * Philip Myers, principal, New York Philharmonic Orchestra 1980–2017) * Ricardo Matosinhos

N

* Marie-Luise Neunecker, former professor at Hochschule für Musik Hanns Eisler Berlin and Hochschule für Musik und Darstellende Kunst Frankfurt am Main, former principal horn at the

Bamberg Symphony Orchestra The Bamberg Symphony (German: Bamberger Symphoniker – Bayerische Staatsphilharmonie) is a renowned German orchestra top-class orchestra that has been residing in Bamberg since its foundation in 1946 and travels the world as a touring orchestra. ...

and the Frankfurt Radio Symphony. * Jeff Nelsen, horn player for Canadian Brass, on faculty at

* Hermann Neuling

O

* Martin Owen, principal BBC Symphony Orchestra, Professor of Horn at the

and

Trinity College of Music Trinity Laban Conservatoire of Music and Dance is a music, dance, and musical theatre conservatoire based in South East London. It was formed in 2005 as a merger of two older institutions – Trinity College of Music and Laban Dance Centre. Trini ...

P

* Vicente Zarzo Pitarch, for 25 years the horn soloist in the Residentie Orkest in

the Hague The Hague ( ) is the capital city of the South Holland province of the Netherlands. With a population of over half a million, it is the third-largest city in the Netherlands. Situated on the west coast facing the North Sea, The Hague is the c ...

* Abel Pereira * Valery Polekh * Giovanni Punto * William Purvis

R

* Eugene Rittich

S

* Neill Sanders, Melos Ensemble, London Orchestras * Will Sanders, Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra * Lorenzo Sansone, member of major North American symphony orchestras, music editor, educator, and horn manufacturer. *

Gunther Schuller Gunther Alexander Schuller (November 22, 1925June 21, 2015) was an American composer, conductor, horn player, author, historian, educator, publisher, and jazz musician. Biography and works Early years Schuller was born in Queens, New York City ...

, Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra, Metropolitan Opera Orchestra, and composer * Jeremy Smith Horn Player for Hunters & Collectors * James Sommerville, Boston Symphony Orchestra * Scott Spillane, member of

Neutral Milk Hotel Neutral Milk Hotel was an American band formed by Jeff Mangum in Ruston, Louisiana, in 1989. They were active until 1998, and then from 2013 to 2015. The band's music featured a deliberately low-quality sound, influenced by indie rock and psy ...

* Stephen Stirling, principal horn City of London Sinfonia, co-principal horn Academy of St Martin in the Fields, teaches at

, soloist, chamber musician * Franz Strauss

T

* Esa Tapani, former principal horn Finnish Radio Symphony Orchestra * James Thatcher, LA studio player * Lucien Thévet, (1914-2007) principal horn of the Paris Conservatoire Orchestra from 1938 to 1967, the Orchestre de l'Opéra national de Paris from 1941 to 1974, professor of horn at the Versailles Conservatoire from 1948 to 1981, and Honorary Member of the International Horn Society from 1978 * Michael Thompson, former principal with

Philharmonia Orchestra The Philharmonia Orchestra is a British orchestra based in London. It was founded in 1945 by Walter Legge, a classical music record producer for EMI Classics, EMI. Among the conductors who worked with the orchestra in its early years were Rich ...

, teacher at

, soloist/chamber musician/clinician * Barry Tuckwell, former principal horn London Symphony Orchestra, soloist and clinician *

Bedřich Tylšar Bedřich Tylšar (born 9 July 1939 in Vrahovice, Prostějov, Second Czechoslovak Republic, Czechoslovakia) is a Czech Republic, Czech horn player and music pedagogue. He is the brother of hornist Zdeněk Tylšar, and a long-term member of the Czech ...

, former horn player with the Czech Philharmonic Orchestra, soloist and pedagogue * Zdeněk Tylšar, former principal horn with the Czech Philharmonic Orchestra, soloist and pedagogue

V

* Eugène Léon Vivier, French player (1821–1900) * Radovan Vlatkovic, former principal of

Berlin Radio Symphony Orchestra The Berlin Radio Symphony Orchestra (''Rundfunk-Sinfonieorchester Berlin'') is a German symphony orchestra based in Berlin. In Berlin, the orchestra gives concerts at the Konzerthaus Berlin and at the Berliner Philharmonie. The orchestra has a ...

from 1982 to 1990, teacher at Mozarteum in

Salzburg Salzburg is the List of cities and towns in Austria, fourth-largest city in Austria. In 2020 its population was 156,852. The city lies on the Salzach, Salzach River, near the border with Germany and at the foot of the Austrian Alps, Alps moun ...

, soloist * Ondřej Vrabec, current solo horn of Czech Philharmonic Orchestra

W

Julius Watkins Julius Watkins (October 10, 1921 – April 4, 1977) was an American jazz musician who played French horn. Described by AllMusic as "virtually the father of the jazz French horn", Watkins won the ''Down Beat'' critics poll in 1960 and 1961 for Mis ...

, a jazz horn player * Richard Watkins, principal horn of

from 1985 to 1996, teacher at

, soloist, chamber musician, clinician * Joan Thelma Watson, principal horn of the Canadian Opera Orchestra and a founding member of the True North Brass quintet * Sebastian Weigle, former principal horn of the Berlin State Opera and an active conductor * Froydis Ree Wekre, member of Oslo Philharmonic from 1961 to 1991, co-principal from 1965 on, Professor of Horn at Norwegian Academy of Music, soloist, clinician * Kate Westbrook, tenor horn player * Jonathan Williams, British orchestral and solo horn player * Sarah Willis, fourth horn of the

* Katy Woolley, principal horn of the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra

Z

* John Zirbel, principal horn of the

(1979 to 2019), soloist and teacher

Use of the horn in jazz

The horn is used only rarely in

jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana, in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Its roots are in blues, ragtime, European harmony, African rhythmic rituals, spirituals, h ...

, but there have been a few notable players: * Pietro Amato, member of The Luyas,

Arcade Fire Arcade Fire is a Canadian indie rock band from Montreal, Quebec, consisting of husband and wife Win Butler and Régine Chassagne, alongside Richard Reed Parry, Tim Kingsbury, and Jeremy Gara. The band's touring line-up includes former core ...

, Bell Orchestre and Torngat * David Amram * John Clark * Vincent Chancey *

Sharon Freeman Ahnee Sharon Freeman is a jazz pianist, French horn player and arranger. Freeman played French horn for the jazz opera '' Escalator over the Hill'', Gil Evans's 1973 album '' Svengali'', and in 1983 she worked on a piece of jazz Christmas music. ...

* John Graas * Stefan de Leval Jezierski * Dave Lee * Bob Northern * Willie Ruff *

* Arkady Shilkloper * Richard Todd *

Tom Varner Tom Varner (born June 17, 1957 in Morristown, New Jersey, Morristown, New Jersey, United States) is an American jazz French horn, horn (French horn) player and composer. Varner grew up in Millburn, New Jersey, where he started playing in the orc ...

References

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Horn players

Horn players Horn may refer to: Common uses * Horn (acoustic), a tapered sound guide ** Horn antenna ** Horn loudspeaker ** Vehicle horn ** Train horn *Horn (anatomy), a pointed, bony projection on the head of various animals * Horn (instrument), a family o ...

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Use of the horn in jazz

See also

References