The contributions of Philip Farkas in the fields of symphonic horn playing, pedagogy, and instrument design are of such importance that he will certainly be considered a major figure of the twentieth century. As a horn player, he was the only person ever to be offered the solo horn position in each of the "big five" American orchestras (Boston Symphony Orchestra, Chicago Symphony Orchestra, Cleveland Orchestra, New York Philharmonic, Philadelphia Orchestra). His first book, The Art of French Horn Playing (Summy-Birchard Music, 1956) is considered the "bible" of horn players and is still a best seller in its field. The Art of Brass Playing (Wind Music, 1962, written in collaboration with the present author) and The Art of Musicianship (Wind Music, 1976) widened his exposure to encompass the entire music profession. The horn he designed with the Frank Holton Company in 1957 immediately established itself as the top-selling American-made horn, a position it continues to hold forty years later. This biography contains a wealth of previously unavailable correspondence, technical material, and photographs. It is a "must" for all horn players and music lovers. - Publisher.

First to be published in the series was The Art of French Horn Playing by Philip Farkas, now Distinguished Professor Emeritus of Music at Indiana University. In 1956, when Summy-Birchard published Farkas's book, he was a solo horn player for the Chicago Symphony and had held similar positions with other orchestras, including the Boston Symphony, Cleveland Orchestra, and Kansas City Conservatory, DePaul University, Northwestern University, and Roosevelt University in Chicago. The Art of French Horn Playing set the pattern, and other books in the series soon followed, offering help to students in learning to master their instruments and achieve their goals.

An overview of the most popular contest and recital pieces written for French horn. The material has been carefully selected to match the technical capabilities of the younger advancing player. Levels 1 & 2 are available for each instrument (flute, oboe, clarinet, alto saxophone, F horn, trumpet, trombone, tuba, drum), both with supplementary piano accompaniment volumes. Correlated to the First Division Band Course.

Contains thoughts and exercises on playing well, warming up, practicing, facial muscles, dynamics, sound production, breathing, intonation, memorization, endurance, self-instruction, performance, etc.

This book has been compiled to aid teachers and students in the development of the French Horn embouchure, particularly in the important period following elementary development. It is based upon the theory that, mechanically, nearly all of the problems to be met by the player in the orchestra, band, chamber ensemble, etc., can be covered by a comprehensive daily routine of practice. Various drills have been devised, with no claim to originality, to cope with the various mechanical problems of embouchure with which the player is faced in the field.

The Horn Player's Audition Handbook provides a handy, one-volume reference guide to the literature, especially for those players preparing for an imminent auditions, containing, as it does, the repertoire most frequently asked for by American orchestras. Since audition lists almost always include a few "non-standard" works, the well-versed student will also want to have employed the more comprehensive collections of excerpts in the course of his/her general preparation for an orchestral career. However, the advantages of having the most "important" audition material under one cover will readily be appreciated and makes this book a welcome addition to the literature.