The first one is open, then (moving to the left, down the scale) middle valve,įirst, and so on, as valves are switched to lower the pitch of the harmonic.įor example, with the open (0) block aligned with the E (5th partial), the pitches go down from there with the valve sequences as illustrated below. Those steps are represented by the blocks on the center part of the graphics below. So, for example, the first and second valve drop the note by 1-1/2 step. It one step, and the third valve shifts the note 1-1/2 step lower. The middle valve shifts the note 1/2 step lower, the first valve shifts The longer a tube is the lower the tone it plays (it basically shifts the harmonic series lower). All a valve does is to route the air through another length of tube to make the overall tubing longer. To play the notes in between those tones they installed valves. Think Taps, or Reveille, or the kinds of things you hearĪgain, the notes that an open tube plays are called the “harmonic series.” That bugle can’t play all the notes in a lot of tunes-just some intervals. If you take that long tubing and roll it up so it’sĮasier to carry you have a bugle. You can actually grab any long tube (like the hose on a shower massage-really!) and play those certain notes. They don’t have valves so they can only play certain notes. Imagine the long, straight horns the guards at a medieval castle (or angels) would play. It's just the set of notes an open tube can play. “Harmonic series” isn’t as scary as it sounds. I’ll just summarize the basics here as it relates to this tool. There are a lot of good resources for this on the net, but To start it helps to have a basic understanding of the concept of the harmonic series. Is particularly tricky because of the "partials" that occur because the harmonics are so close together in the range the horn is played.īoth of those are available in the Excel file here. I have done another graphic for the Bb trumpet, but the French horn I've included a pdf file of a movable graphic you can use if This tool is to help you (or your student) understand harmonics and fingering of the French horn. Things I wish I had known when I was learning the French horn Use the links above to navigate around to what's useful for you.įrench Horn Harmonic Series and Fingerings If you play the French horn, especially, if you're just starting out, you know how frustrating it is to make the right note come out of the thing. I've also created a movable graphic to explain why French horns I've designed wheels that help me transposeĪnd visualize the relationship of instruments in different keys. This page has some resources that might be helpful for horn playing and transposing. What I Wish I'd Known When I First Picked up a French Horn
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