Interpretation

Nerves, Pills and Doping

Behind a debate once confined to musicians lies a wider shift in how performance anxiety, medication and professional responsibility began to be separated instead of confused.

By Christian Baechler

Part 3

A study of musical intonation

From wind quintets to brass sections, balance, overtones and perception shape intonation in ways that often diverge from measurable frequency.

By Christopher Leuba

Part 3

Maurice André

Biography

Maurice André reflects on maturity—balancing performance, recordings and teaching, refining his approach to instruments and audience, and preparing for the limits of a virtuoso career.

By Jean-Pierre Mathez

Part 1

A study of musical intonation

Resultant tones, harmonic series ratios and chord spacing challenge equal temperament, linking acoustics and practical ensemble intonation.

By Christopher Leuba

Editorial

So your trumpet plays in tune

Keyboard tuning, just intonation and string phrasing place brass players between conflicting pitch systems, as Thomas Stevens outlines practical compromises.

By Thomas Stevens

Part 2

A study of musical intonation

From harmonic-series tuning to valve-slide adjustments on the horn, practical listening and resonance become more reliable guides than equal temperament alone.

By Christopher Leuba

Part 1

Ornaments in 18th-century Horn Concertos?

Performance once depended as much on informed invention as on written notes, and early horn concertos still carry that forgotten freedom in plain sight.

By Peter Damm

Part 2

Articulation or bowing on the trumpet

Trumpet articulation becomes a full performing language, from détaché and staccato to legato, glissando, dynamics and score interpretation.

By Timofey Dokschidser

Barry Tuckwell

Interview

Between the London Symphony Orchestra, international solo tours and Mozart or Strauss concertos, Barry Tuckwell reflects on sound, risk and musical instinct.

By Jean-Pierre Mathez

Contemporary systems and trends for the tuba

New music, new rules: Daniel Perantoni explores extended techniques, graphic notation and the evolving language of the tuba.

By Daniel Perantoni

Part 1

The Trumpet in the USA

Across competitions, teaching and equipment in the U.S., trumpet practice exposes clashing ideas of musicality, raising the question of shared standards beyond national styles

By Thomas Stevens

The subconscious, a useful friend

From yogic practices to auto-hypnosis, mental conditioning and visualisation are linked to performance, self-control, and the body's hidden responses.

By Michel Ricquier

Editorial

As concert life shifts away from brass, the future of the instrument depends on artistic standards, thoughtful programming and the commitment of every performer.

By Jean-Pierre Mathez

Part 4

Ornaments in 18th-century Horn Concertos?

Changes and modifications of tempo

Tempo, dynamics and cadenzas expose how much an 18th-century horn concerto once depended on choices that modern notation and instruments can easily obscure.

By Peter Damm

Snapshot: the American Brass Quintet in Europe

Report on the American Brass Quintet’s tour in Europe, highlighting performances, reception and the ensemble’s role in chamber brass music.

By Jean-Pierre Mathez

Conversation with Ludwig Güttler

Between Bach, historical instruments and modern virtuosity, Ludwig Güttler argues for a trumpet tradition shaped by declamation, research and a refusal of musical purism.

By Christian Blümel, Gerd Radeke

Transcription fundamentals

Between Bach fugues and Mozart concertos, Ralph Sauer questions where brass transcription renews a work — and where it merely imitates.

By Ralf Sauer

The first european horn symposium

A week in Trossingen brought leading horn players, Mozart debates, natural-horn controversies and lasting friendships at a landmark European gathering.

By Jeffrey Agrell

An American trumpet player's impressions of european brass performances

An American trumpet player reflects on European brass traditions, comparing education, amateur practice and professional performance across both continents.

By Harold E. Krueger

Part 1

The Haydn Trumpet Concerto

As editions, instruments and traditions diverge, Haydn’s trumpet concerto becomes a lens on notation, style and the shifting meaning of performance.

By Alfred Willener

Ornamentation of baroque music for brass

Baroque ornamentation forgotten? Without it, performances become dull and repetitive. This article argues for a return to style, freedom, and creative interpretation.

By Marc Meissner

Part 2

The Haydn Trumpet Concerto

André, Wobisch, Dokshitzer, Stringer and others reveal how tempo, phrasing, ornamentation and cadenzas reshape Haydn's trumpet concerto.

By Alfred Willener

Yes or no? Beware!

Do we or do we not play transcriptions?

“Transcriptions: yes or no? Beware.” Roger Bobo challenges tubists to rethink repertoire, taste, and tradition in a bold call for musical judgment and artistic freedom.

By Roger Bobo

The use of the mind in instrumental performance

Relaxation, concentration and mental imagery reshape technical practice, linking self-confidence and instrumental control beyond physical training alone.

By Michel Ricquier