Twenty Difficult Etudes for the Horn's Middle Register by Daniel Grabois. Available from the author at danielgrabois.com. 2009, $20.

I remember my first book of "contemporary" studies very well - I still use it with my own students, along with a few others that have come along since. It presented challenges to my ear, my brain, and my technique that took patience to conquer. In the end, I was much better off for persevering (or perhaps it was my teachers who persevered...). Daniel Grabois teaches horn at the Hartt School, chairs the Contemporary Performance area at the Manhattan School of Music, and performs with one of my favorite brass groups, the Meridian Arts Ensemble. With "street cred" like that, one can't help but be curious about what "difficult" etudes would look like. In short, these are finely crafted etudes for the middle and low registers, with an overall range of G to g". There are only a few tonal moments in the whole book, but that is part of the point. Regardless of the harmony, the musical gestures throughout are consistent with tonal music, so there is no reason one cannot play musically. Thus, as he says, these are for players "to solidify their tone and singing approach" in this range and in a contemporary vocabulary. The technical aspects are certainly challenging - the meter changes, the large skips and other tests of flexibility, the range of rhythms and tempos, the myriad written-in accidentals, and a few extended techniques thrown in - all confront the player with their capabilities (or lack thereof), and they are all good things to work on. The etudes do not progress in difficulty; you just jump in the deep end and start swimming. I really like the challenges presented here, particularly for this particular range, and will be adding it to my list of contemporary etude books for my students (and me) to use. These, too, will require patience and perseverance, but they are well worth it. JS