A Review by Lial Kofoed

My son Erik and I were privileged to spend June 23-30 attending the Second Annual Kendall Betts Horn Camp at the White Mountain School in Littleton, NH. The camp this year attracted thirty-six participants (a moderate increase from the first year attendance) at a variety of experience and skill levels. The participants in included several exceptional high school students, fine college horn players from several universities and schools of music, some young professional and free-lance players, and a surprising number of mature (the term "older" is no longer allowed in my presence) amateur players. It is worth noting that many of the first-year participants returned for this second camp, which certainly is the "proof of the pudding" "in terms of the experience provided in the first year. The variety of experience and skill of the participant proved a most interesting and productive aspect of the camp for me. Because of this variety, I was able to hear and struggle towards excellence without ever feeling totally intimidated or out of my depth.

Once again the White Mountain School provided a congenial environment. The Great Hall, with its north-facing glass wall, mountain views, and spacious acoustics, was a wonderful venue within which to hear the horn. Food was unexpectedly good, and as most participants stayed (and all ate) on campus, the sense of camaraderie developed wonderfully during the week.

The faculty included Kendall Betts, of course, who is currently Principal Horn with the Minnesota Orchestra. Other faculty included Abby Mayer (retired from professional playing but wonderfully passionate about the horn, and a gifted and patient teacher); Soichiro Ohno, Principal Horn of the Frankfurt (Germany) Radio Orchestra; Vincent Barbee (professional from Toronto); and three days each of Eric Ruske (soloist) and Peter Kurau (from the Eastman School of Music). Steven Harlos from the Univesity of North Texas provided spectacular accompaniment despite a heavy workload and little opportunity for preparation.

Each day began with sessions on the basics of breathing, sound production, and articulation, reinforced by practice with Mr. Betts’s own and particularly brutal editions of the Kopprasch etudes, with follow-up personal instruction focused on the topic and etude of the day. It always surprises me that after years of playing I still benefit from a clearly explained study of the basics of sound production and articulation. The afternoon provided opportunities for either solo performance in a master class setting, basic musical and performing instruction, or a high-powered orchestral excerpts session for those seriously preparing for professional auditions. The opportunities for performance for and individual instruction from the faculty were particularly meaningful for me, and the opportunities for these interactions were ample.

The instruction was wonderful. The various faculty all demonstrated their abilities to teach at whatever level was required. I was particularly appreciative of Mr. Betts’s expectation of excellence, which he managed to communicate while at the same time remaining supportive and non-critical. His T-shirt ‘I Yell Because I Care" certainly got my attention; but I never heard him yell, though the instruction from all the faculty was appropriately intense.

Each evening ended with informal faculty concerts, including performances of both the standard and some unusual literature, and some spectacular quartet playing. Their lively performance of Schumann’s Konzertstueck will always be in my memory--the faculty artists playing so freely and joyously in the presence of an audience of appreciative hornists! I doubt I will ever hear such a performance of this work again.

Once again, Bob Osmun and Walter Lawson came for an afternoon and shared their expertise in horn and mouthpiece design, repair, and maintenance. The week ended with a participant recital Friday night, including performances by different participants of each and every movement of the four Mozart concertos, plus the Concert Rondo and other solo pieces by Glazonov, Franz Strauss, Custer, and Wilder. The grand finale on Saturday was a Hornathon Concert at the Littleton Opera House! This concert included a version of Beethoven’s Egmont Overture arranged for twelve horns, proceeded through a variety of quartets and octets, and finally ended with thirty-seven (count them, 37--and not one too many) horns playing Bujanovski’s Fantasie on Themes from Wagner’s Ring. I’ve never played in, nor heard, anything like it! I don’t think anyone else in Littleton had, either.

The camp is surprisingly reasonable: my airfare was more than tuition, room, and board for the camp. Faculty did a superb job of teaching to the varied levels of skill in the group without ever compromising the pursuit of excellence for students at any level. The atmosphere in the camp was an extremely productive mix of support and expectation of excellence and improvement. There was very little sense of competitiveness in any of the sessions. I doubt there is a better all-horn experience available (perhaps barring the IHS annual workshops, of course) and would recommend attendance at future camps to all serious students and lovers of the horn. Of course, many of us made the convenient trek the following Monday down to Osmun Brass near Boston to get the new horns or horn repairs and modifications we had decided we had to have during the camp. Planning for next year’s camp has already begun. I would anticipate a continued high rate of return campers, but there will certainly be room for new participants as well.