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Monday, May 16, 2011

This microphone situation will be rectified by this Saturday.

I am sick of having to play quiet. The mic on my iPhone can't handle the awesomeness of the French Horn sound above a mezzo forte level. I want to make your faces do this
I noticed a question from a reader that I felt compelled to answer due to its pertinence.

Only In America (link is to their blog) asked this : "Any idea why its called the 'french' horn? just because it was invented by the french?"
The answer to this question is yes.
Only kidding. It is descended from the natural horn (a horn without valves and originally used for hunting calls).
Since 1971 the International Horn Society has recommended the use of the word horn alone, as the commonly played instrument is not, in fact, the French horn, but rather the wider bore German horn. 
So the answer to your question is that the reason we call it a French horn is that we are all dumb.

Here are some out takes from my latest session. Things are progressing, albeit slowly. I left several mistakes in for you to laugh at.
 This is what it will sound like when I am done.

15 comments:

  1. so who started calling it the french horn?

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  2. @ i.o . The best worded explanation I can find is this : "The hunting horns used in France are a predecessor of the modern horn; perhaps that is where the national designation came. Early horns were "natural" horns that could only play notes in the overtone series (similar to the way a valveless bugle is played). In order to play in different keys horn players inserted crooks. The first valved horns were used so musicians wouldn't have to deal with multiple crooks. The French version of the valved horn was a small horn with piston valves; the German version was a larger horn with rotary valves. The large rotary valved German horn is what we think of as a modern horn so it would probably be more accurate to call it German than French."

    -posted by filletofspam

    Really, it's only Americans that refer to it as such, further cementing our status as a non cultured society.

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  3. You will sound like that in no time

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  4. hahah I clicked on the first video and didn't realize my speakers were turned all the way up... AHHHHH.

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  5. How awesome is that indiana jones video? HAHAHAHA
    New ringtone :D

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  6. Lol, French horns from france. Not! Lol.

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  7. I think you will sound great after you fix the microphone problem.

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  8. haha what the fuck is this Indiana clip :D
    I mean I saw the movie long ago but this made me laugh

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  9. was this Indiana Jones And The ArK of the Covenant? Eh, nostalgia. I will check also if yo replied to one of my earlier questions. heh

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  10. The clip was from Raiders of the Lost Ark, near the end when the Nazis open The Ark of the Covenant (tm).

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  11. I am looking forward to hear you play when the microphone is fixed.

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  12. That indiana jones special effect scared the crap out of me when I was younger.

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