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Jan 1, 1545
The Earliest Record of a French Horn
In 1545, this is the earliest recorded time that a french horn, originally called the "Cor de Chasse" or French Hunting Horn, was used in music. The piece it appeared in "Battles, Hunts, and Bird-Songs" by Tielman Susato. This horn is made in the key of Eb. (Source: http://www.hornhistory.com/ ) No date is specified. -
Four Kinds of French Horns
At this point in time, there are now 4 different kinds of horns that are used in music. The "Le Ground Cor" (The Big Horn), the "Cor a Plusiers Tours" (The Horn of Several Turns), "Le Cor Qui n'a qu'un Seul Tour" (The Horn Which Has Only One Turn), and "Le Huchet" (The Horn With Which One Calls From Afar). (Source: http://www.rugs-n-relics.com/Brass/french-horns/frenchhorn-History.html ) No date is specified. -
The Hand Horn
As early as in the 1720's, the hand horn was used. The hand horn was not actually a type of french horn, it was a technique players used to get even more notes out of one horn. Because there had to be a different french horn for every key, players learned to move their hand around inside the bell of the instrument to produce a few more notes per each instrument. No date specified. -
Changing the Key of a French Horn (Source: http://www.rugs-n-relics.com/Brass/french-horns/frenchhorn-History.html )
At the time, different horns had different keys. So, for example, if the composer needed the french horn to play an A then a B, the player would have to switch horns because one horn could play the harmonic of A and another horn could play the harmonic of B. Therefore, there was a need for a single horn to change keys to play more notes. The crook, the piece of tubing whose length can be changed to change the key of the horn, was invented by a German musician, Hampel, in 1753. No specific date. -
The Cor Solo and The Waldhorn
These instruments were one of the first to be designed specifically to fit the Hand Horn technique including the new invention of the crooks. The Cor Solo horn only had crooks for the keys of G, F, Eb, and D. However, the Waldhorn did have the attachments for higher and lower keys. These two horns were played and improved upon in the 1750's, and evolved into another kind of horn. No specific date, -
The Orchestra Horn
The Orchestra Horn was perfected from 1750 to 1755. With the Orchestra Horn, horn players could now just play one instrument using different crook (that at this time also changed the legth of the mouthpipe) and the hand horn techniques to reach a full chromatic range of notes. No date specified. -
The Valve is Invented
Two inventors, Heinrich Stoelzel and Friedrich Blühmel, in July of 1814, invented the first valve for the french horn. They worked on a Waldhorn/Orchestral Horn to create the valve that switches between the crooks easily, so that now, with hand horn technique, a full chromatic range can be reached on a single horn. Stoelzel then inspired François Perinet to later invent a piston valve, used in the Vienna Horn, which is still in use today. No date specified. -
The Omnitonic Horn
At this point, the french horn has come a long way, but playing the Orchestra Horn was still a difficult task because every time there is a key change, the player has to stop and switch crooks. By 1815, there were many efforts to invent a horn that had built in crooks, a mechanism (an early valve of some kind) to switch between them, while still using the hand horn technique. The Omnitonic Horn itself was not in use for long, but the idea is what counts. No specific date. -
The F Horn and Double Horn
A new idea entered the horn society in the mid-1800's when the F Horn was introduced. The F Horn used valves to change the length of the instrument, causing different notes to come out based on just air and the tubing. The Double Horn was invented in 1900 by Fritz Kruspe, when a horn in the key of B-flat was combined with the F Horn, and a fourth valve (trigger) was added to change the air's route from the F to the Bb side. No specific date.
