In First

Form an embouchure with your lips. To blow into the mouthpiece, you have to first learn how to purse your lips. This is called, “embouchure.”

• Practice saying, “mmmm” with your mouth, slowly adding pressure between your lips. Your lips should form a frown.

• The corners of your mouth should stay in place, almost as if you’re puckering your lips.

• It’s a good idea to practice in front of a mirror to make sure you’re getting your form right.

Practice doing what you just learned, but now with the mouthpiece against your embouchure.  You want to apply just enough pressure to prevent air from leaking out the side of the mouthpiece, but no more.  You should feel fast air blowing out of the shank of the mouthpiece with your free left hand.  A good way to practice this is to buzz and point the mouthpiece against a piece of paper on your music stand.  Try to blow the paper off the stand while you buzz.

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Second

Blow into the horn. Without pressing any of the valves, you can use the embouchure technique to blow into the mouthpiece of the horn.

• You want to blow into the horn using fast, quick blows.

• Make sure you’re not pressing your mouth into the mouthpiece too hard. If your teeth hurt or a ring appears on your lips, you’re pressing too hard. You want a relaxed tension against the mouthpiece when you blow into it.

 

 

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Third

Memorize the keys. It will make your life a lot easier to learn exactly where the keys are so that your fingers know where to go when you’re playing.

• Through repeated playing muscle memory builds, so your fingers know where the keys are.

• Practices pressing the keys, knowing which keys you’re pressing. Do this until you can pass a test of accuracy.

• It can help to have a fingering chart while you practice.

Holding the French Horn

Once you've gotten the hang of buzzing, it's time to put the instrument together and makes sounds on the horn.  The weight of the horn is supported with the right hand, inside the bell.  The left hand simply balances the weight of the horn, allowing the left-hand fingers to remain relaxed as they play the keys.  Hand shape is very important when holding the horn.  Proper right hand shape helps you play in tune, so you can match the rest of your ensemble. 

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And Last

Learn how to control volume. The volume of the notes you play will depend on how much air you blow into the horn, and how fast. The more air you blow, and the faster you blow it, the louder the note will sound (and vice versa).

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