I have a lot of fun playing English horn because of the different role that it plays in the orchestra. Sometimes it’s part of the woodwind section, sometimes it’s doubling the viola line, and sometimes it becomes an honorary brass instrument. Tonally the English horn is rather reedy, so I guess when doubling the brass (usually the trombone line), I’m playing for the ambient color I provide to the part, but I always wonder if I can actually be heard.
While playing English horn in a band or orchestra is a delight, doubling can be tricky depending on how quickly you must transition between the two instruments and how much space is available to you on stage. Today I’ll be sharing the 3 things that help me juggle the two instruments successfully.
Plan out the instrument swap
During your preparation of the music, decide when you’ll make the instrument swap. Write this into your part and circle it. Since I often play from my iPad, I’ll highlight the instrument swap in yellow to draw my attention.
Sometimes you will have to skip some written music because the composer or arranger didn’t allot enough time to get the other instrument ready and safely put down the first. If this is the case, look at the other oboe parts to make sure that anything you leave out is somehow covered.
If needed, you can transpose a few measures for one instrument to be played on the other. In the Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets movie score I recently played I had to at times both leave out some music and transpose some music to make the switch work.
Decide when to dip your reed in water
If you have long stretches of time where one instrument is at rest while you play the other, your reed is going to dry out. As you know, your best sound is made on a damp but not too wet reed. Plan ahead when you’ll prepare the reed before you make the instrument swap. Sometimes there will be plenty of time for you to dunk the reed AND swap instruments, but often that’s not the case and you’ll need to dunk the reed and place it on the instrument 15-20 bars before you make the swap.
For fast changes, or when I have to prep my reed far before I play, I write the instruction “prep oboe reed” above the bars of rest when I’ll do that preparation.
Swab as often as practical
It’s really common for doublers to get water in their keys because their secondary instrument is often cold when they start to play. To help prevent water from getting stuck in your tone holes, swab your instruments as soon as you can practically do so after switching.
Top 3 tips for doubling on English horn
Some oboists prefer to use feathers in this situation to move the condensation evenly around the bore of the instrument. I find this practical only when I have long enough rests to remove the top joint of the instrument. If I’m playing fairly constantly and letting the secondary instrument sit without being cleaned for 3-5 minutes at a time, I prefer to use a pull-through swab because it’s faster than taking the top joint off the instrument.
Do you have any tips for doubling English horn? Comment below and let me know if I’ve missed your favorite tip!