[Are french horns dead to drum corps?]

I do have to agree with the original poster, who referred to the mellophone as a "weapon". LOL

[Are french horns dead to drum corps?]

Well yeah, but a 3:19 ratio of Fr. Horns to the hornline is going to make it easier to be heard than a 6:70.

We had a pretty-good, lead mello line in '89, made up of half French players and half trumpet players (the soloist that year, Ken, was an amazing French player). I don't think it's a case of the French not being loud, but it's a comparison thing....all other things being equal, players can get more a lot more (quality) volume out of mellos. Just my opinion....YMMV.

Peace,

CuriousMe

I disagree. You can get a perception of volume from a mello, just like you can with a soprano/trumpet due to the register and absence of the low partials. When it comes to sheer volume, a well-played french horn takes the cake. We did some decibel testing when I marched BD, and the two loudest players were french horns - and it's not as if the rest of the players were slouches... <G> We easily exceeded 100 decibels, and no other instrument was close.

The presence of a wide spectrum of partials gives a dense sound quality you can't find elsewhere in a horn line. This includes altos and all of the other bastardized creations that have been used in a quest to replace french horns. The actual quest itself acknowledges that there is a need to fill this gaping hole in the sound of a horn line. It's almost like listening to music with your midrange speaker blown. You just don't get the whole picture sonically.

With all due respect to the BD horn line this year, there was a real need for a french horn voice. Certainly they sounded fantastic, and with the identifiable BD sound - but they had more of a mellophone-centric Cadets sound to them. I can appreciate that sound for what it is, but some of the uniqueness was missing. This is the most disturbing aspect of what corps has become. They all have very similar sounds to them now - you didn't see that in the past. The only corps that sounded a little unique was Carolina Crown, probably due to the arrangements. The Bb "bugles" don't sound good outdoors, but don't get me started on that...

I'd hope that at some point french horns would make a comeback. I don't buy the "small mouthpiece" and "not enough good players" arguments against using them. They're excuses. To paraphrase Tom Hanks, "there's no excuses in drum corps!". Perhaps too many brass staffs take the easy way out. Trumpet players are a dime a dozen (no offense intended), so it's EASY to come up with an alto/mellophone line. I was an "OK" player when I joined the BD, and owe a lot to the brass staff there for making me a strong player. A good brass program will yield good players, no matter what they play. Hopefully brass staffs will see the benefits of a french horn voice and take steps to bring them back into the activity. It will take a little bit of work, but the positives are well worth it.

[Are french horns dead to drum corps?]

We usually have four, and they play a single part.

One other thing - now there are F Marching horns (lika a descant - fingerings similar to Mellophone). They are much easier to play and march with. Hopefully some brave soul in control of a good hornline will give them a try.

Well said, oh F.O.N.. I'd also like to rebut the assertion that french horns don't have adequate volume. I recall our line pretty much peeled lacquer off instruments from 100+ yards. LOL.

[Are french horns dead to drum corps?]

<<Mellos produce a basically similar sound, and are much more stable...?>

I disagree. Mellophone sounds nothing like french horn - and they're not any more stable, especially depending on who's playing them. <G>