Here is a list of some amazing women of the horn world.  It is by no means comprehensive—just a snapshot to learn about some women you may or may not have heard of, and should know. 

Angela Barnes

Born: Lancashire, England

Teachers/Schools: Studied with Elizabeth Davis at Chetham’s School in Manchester; at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama studied with Hugh Seenan, Jeff Bryant and Richard Bissill.

Symphonies: Angela was recently appointed second horn of the London Symphony Orchestra while still a student at GSMD—the first woman ever in the LSO horn and brass section.  She is a former principal horn with the National Youth Orchestra and the European Union Youth Orchestra; she was also a finalist in the 2002 BBC Young Musician competition.

Lisa Bontrager   

Born: The United States

Teachers/Schools: two performance degrees from the University of Michigan; studied with Louis Stout.

Chamber groups/orchestras: member of the Pennsylvania Quintet, the Millennium Brass and the horn duet MirrorImage; principal hornist of the Pennsylvania Centre Chamber Orchestra and Penn’s Woods Festival Orchestra; has performed with the Rochester Philharmonic, the Cincinnati Chamber and Ballet Orchestras, the Chautauqua Symphony, the Aspen Festival and Chamber Orchestras, and the Harrisburg Symphony.

Teaching: Lisa has been the horn Professor at Penn State University since 1985.

Of note: Lisa is an endorser/clinician for the Holton Company; she also served on the Advisory Council of the International Horn society for six years.  She also ‘doubles’ as a virtuoso tenor horn player, touring and recording with the Brass Band of Battle Creek and the New Columbian Brass Band.  Her first solo recording, “Hunter’s Moon” is on Summit Records.

Elizabeth Cook-Shen

Born: United States

Teachers/Schools: Earned a Bachelor’s degree in music from the University of Michigan at Ann Arbor where she studied with Lowell Greer and a Master’s degree from Rice University studying with William Ver Meulen.

Symphonies: Elizabeth has been second horn of the Los Angeles Philharmonic since 1995 and has also performed with the Los Angeles Philharmonic New Music Group; was previously principal horn of the Houston Ballet Orchestra and the Houston Grand Opera; has previously performed with the Detroit Symphony, Houston Symphony, and the Houston Symphony Chamber Players.

Summer Festivals: Received a Fellowship from the Tanglewood Music Center in 1991 and has appeared as a guest artist at the Aspen Music Festival and Sitka Music Festival.

Elizabeth Freimuth 

Born: Pennsylvaina

Teachers/Schools: B.M in Horn Performance and Music Education as well as a Performer’s Certificate from the Eastman School of Music; studied with Verne Reynolds and Peter Kurau; M.M in Horn Performance from Rice University’s Shepherd School of Music; studied with William Ver Meulen.

Symphonies: Assistant Principal/Utility horn with the Colorado Symphony from 1998-2000, currently Principal horn with the Kansas City Symphony since 2000; performances with the Utah Symphony, Houston Symphony, Houston Grand Opera and Houston Ballet Orchestra.

Teaching: Currently teaches horn at the Conservatory of Music at the University of Missouri-Kansas City

Summer Festivals: have included Tanglewood, the Grand Teton Music Festival, Sunflower Music Festival and Sun Valley Summer Symphony in Idaho.

Of Note: Favorite quote: “Believe in yourself.  You gain strength, courage, and confidence by every experience in which you stop to look fear in the face…You must do that which you think you cannot do.” --Eleanor Roosevelt

--Information obtained from the Kansas City Symphony web site and articles in the Kansas City Star

Robin Graham

Born: United States

Teachers/Schools: Studied privately with Wendell Hoss, and with James Chambers while a student at Julliard.

Symphonies: Principal Horn of the Houston Symphony while still a student at Julliard; Principal Horn of the Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra from 1978-1985; Principal Horn of the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra from 1985-2004.

ChamberMusic/Festivals: Former member of the Dorian Wind Quintet and the Ligeti Trio; performances with The Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center; festivals include Aspen, Marlboro, Chamber Music Northwest and many others.

Recordings: Numerous recordings with the Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra on the Nonesuch, Angel/EMI and Deolos labels; over sixty recordings with the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra and Pops.

Of Note: “We should strive to communicate our love of the instrument we have chosen, and play from the heart.” From the winter 2000 IWBC newsletter written by Nancy Goodearl.

Laurel Hinkle 

Born: New Jersey; grew up in Florida

Teachers/Schools: B.A. from the University of Cincinnati

Symphonies: was a member of the Dayton Philharmonic for over 35 years (retired in 2000); also plays alto horn in the Cincinnati Brass Band.

Teaching: teaches horn and piano from her home.

Of Note: Laurel had to drive 60 miles each way to the closest horn teacher when she was in high school (now that’s dedication!)

Helen Kotas Hirsch 

Born: Southwest side of Chicago; died at the age of 84 in December of 2000.

Teachers/schools: earned a degree in psychology from the University of Chicago; studied horn with Frank Kryl and Louis Dufrasne.

Symphonies: Chicago Civic Orchestra, Woman’s Symphony Orchestra, Leopold Stokowski’s All-American Youth Orchestra, Pittsburgh Symphony, Chicago Symphony, Grand Park Symphony Orchestra, Lyric Opera of Chicago.

Teaching: Taught at the American and Sherwood Conservatories of Music for many years; pupils include Lowell Greer and Randall Faust among many others.

Of note: Helen was the first woman to hold the position of principal horn in a major American orchestra; since she left the CSO in 1948, the only other woman to hold a principal position at the symphony has been Sarah Bulling, a harpist.  Helen’s ‘dressing room’ before CSO concerts was a broom closet.  Her thoughts on the Women’s Symphony Orchestra of Chicago: “[it was formed by]…professional musicians who realized that careers were not open to women in established symphonies and decided to found one of their own.” –quote from “In Memorium: Helen Kotas Hirsch and The Sound of the Horn” Horn Call 31:3 (May 2001).  Additional information from The Chicago Tribune, 12/21/00). 

Marni Johnson 

Born: Modesto, CA

Teachers/Schools: began studying horn with Robert K. Hamilton; attended California Institute of the Arts and graduated with a BFA degree.

Commercial work: for thirty years, Marni has been an L.A. studio musician having recorded with artists such as Frank Sinatra, Peggy Lee, Barbra Streisand, Isaac Hayes, Earth Wind & Fire, Michael Jackson, Prince, Sheena Easton, Natalie Cole, Christina Aguilara, the Carpenters, Shirly Horn, P Diddy, and Juan Gabriel.  She has also recorded for movies and television: the Star Trek series, Roots, “Color Purple”, “Batman”, “Rocky II”, and “101 Dalmations.”  She has also toured with Henri Mancini’s orchestra, and played for the Emmy’s, the Grammys, and the Academy Awards.

Symphonies/Chamber music: principal with the Valley Symphony, Ventura Symphony and Santa Barbara Symphonies; member of the Glendale Symphony for nine years; has performed with the Los Angeles Philharmonic, Pasadena, Long Beach and New West Symphonies.  She is a  member of Kaleidoscope brass quintet and a former member of the Westwood Wind Quintet.

Of note: Marni is the first female brass player to work commercially in L.A.

Laura Klock  

Born: Alexandria, Virginia

Teachers/Schools: earned a B.M. and an M.M. from the University of Michigan; studied with Louis Stout, Thomas Murray, and Harry Berv.

Symphonies/Chamber Music: currently principal horn with the Springfield Symphony Orchestra; member of the Avanti Woodwind Quintet, Infinity Brass Quintet; has performed with the Mohawk Trail Concerts, the Musicorda Festival, the Monadnock Music Festival, Chamber Music Plus in Hartford, the North Country Chamber Players, and the New England Bach Festival in Marlboro, VT; has been a guest artist in Taiwan, the British Virgin Islands, and with the Bogota, Colombia Philharmonic; also a featured artist at the 8^th International Brass Festival in Verona, Italy.

Teaching: Has taught horn at the University of Massachusetts-Amherst since 1974; is also on the faculty of the International Youth Music festival in Tainan, Taiwan.  Laura was one of my teachers—she is a fantastic teacher and player.

Of Note: In her spare time Laura enjoys language studies, gardening, and water-skiing.  She chose to play the horn because she knew her elementary band director would let her join if she could even hold an oboe or horn; lucky for us the school’s oboe was broken. Certain bio information taken from the book Horn of Plenty by Louis J. Stout

Julie Landsman 

Born: Brooklyn, NY

Teachers/Schools: studied in high school with Howard T. Howard (one of the principals at the Met) and Carmine Caruso.  Graduated from the Julliard Music School where she studied with James Chambers. 

Symphonies: Co-Principal of the Houston Symphony, Principal of the St. Paul Chamber Orchestra, freelance work in NYC with New York Philharmonic, and Orpheus; has been one of the two principal horns with the Metropolitan Orchestra since 1985.

Teaching: Faculty member of the Julliard School since 1989, she has also taught at the University of Houston, Rice University, Purchase College, and Brooklyn College.

Summer Festivals: have included Marlboro Music School, Sarasota Festival, Santa Fe Chamber Music Festival, La Jolla Summerfest, and the faculty of the Aspen Music School.

Of note: “There was a gasp from the committee when I, a woman, stepped from behind the screen,” remarked Julie of her MET audition.  “I’m absolutely convinced that if it hadn’t been for the screen, I would not have won the position.”  From Cornucopia, January 2001

Lucinda (Cindy) Lewis 

Born: Kansas City, MO

Teachers/Schools: studied with Clarendon Van Norman while a student at the Manhattan School of Music, where she earned a B.A. and M.M. in horn performance.

Symphonies: has played principal horn with the Brooklyn Symphony, the Chamber Opera Theatre in New York City, the Chatauqua Festival Orchestra, the Jerusalem Symphony, the Israel Chamber Orchestra, and the Israel Philharmonic; she has played principal horn with the New Jersey Symphony since 1977.

Teaching: has taught at the Rubin Academy in Jerusalem, and Princeton University

Of Note: Cindy has recently completed the book Broken Embouchures, a "comprehensive resource covering the subject of embouchure injuries and embouchure problems and is the product of eight years of extensive research." This looks to be (alas, I do not own it yet) an excellent resource if you are experiencing problems with your embouchure.  Check out her web site at www.embouchures.com.  In addition to her horn and embouchure activities, City is also a successful artist and jewelry designer.

Jean Martin 

Born: Decatur, Georgia

Teachers/schools: has attended the Westminster Schools in Atlanta, Lawrence University, and earned her D.M.A. from the Manhattan School of Music; teachers include Brice Andrus, Clarendon Van Norman, and Paul Ingraham.

Orchestras/chamber groups: prior to her teaching position at UGA, she freelanced in NYC with The Metropolitan Opera, the Mostly Mozart Festival, and the New York Chamber Symphony; currently performs with the Georgia Woodwind Quintet, the Georgia Brass Quintet, and the Artrazann Trio.  She has recently performed at the International Double Reed Symposium in Rotterdam, with the summer season of the New York City Ballet, and toured Japan and Korea with The New York Pops.

Teaching: Jean has taught at the University of Georgia since 1990.

Ethel Merker 

Born: Chicago Heights, IL

Teachers/Schools: earned bachelor’s and master’s degrees from Northwestern University.

Symphonies: NBC Radio Orchestra, Chicago Symphony Orchestra, the Boston Pops, the Berlin Radio Orchestra, as well as numerous other symphonic, opera and ballet orchestras.

Other professional playing: has recorded with/backed: the Jackson Five, Diana Ross, John Denver, Barbra Streisand, Johnny Mathis, and Curtis Mayfield.  She has also recorded many commercials as a studio musician for companies such as Mc Donald’s, Coca-Cola, United Airlines, Marlboro.

Teaching: has taught at Northwestern, DePaul, Notre Dame, Vandercook College, Indiana University and Universities in Germany.

Of note: Ethel is the only woman in the world who has an instrument named for her—the “Merker Matic” manufactured by Holton.  “It’s the greatest thrill to end up in the design of horn to be responsible for something that you’ve looked at all the time and as an input so the youngsters of today can really have something that can help them in their career.” –from ABC7 Chicago

Marie Luise Neunecker   

Born: Germany (I assume!--couldn't find definite info)

Teachers/Schools:  studied with Erich Penzel in Cologne while studying at the Musikhochschule; she also studied musicology and German language literature in addition to the horn.

Prizes: has won numerous prizes at competitions, such as the German Music Competition in Bonn, the ARD in Munich, and first prize at the Concert Artists’ Guild Competition in New York.

Orchestras/Chamber music: Frankfort Opera, Bamberg Symphony Orchestra, Hesse Radio Symphony Orchestra; she has performed as a soloist with numerous orchestras in Germany, Austria, France, Italy, Czech Republic, Japan, and the United States.

Festivals: Performances at the Munich Biennale, the Schleswig-Holstein Music Festival, the Marlboro Music Festival, and the Vienna Festival.

Of note: Marie Neunecker started playing the piano at age seven; when her brothers told her girls couldn’t play brass instruments, she began studying the trumpet as well.  At the age of nineteen she switched from trumpet to horn, and by age 23 was the solo horn for the Frankfort Opera.

Jane Richter   

Born: United States

Teachers/Schools: B.S. and M.M. from Temple University; D.M.A, Combs College; has studied with Mason Jones and Herbert Pierson of the Philadelphia Orchestra.

Symphonies: Currently principal horn with the Pennsylvania Ballet and Orchestra of St. Peter By the Sea; an active player with the Mozart Orchestra, Philly Pops, Opera Company of Philadelphia, Sylvan Opera, Opera Theater of Philadelphia, New Jersey Opera Festival, and the Delaware Valley Philharmonic.  She was also a member of the Frank Sinatra orchestra performing on the east coast.

Teaching: Is currently Assistant Professor of Horn at West Chester University; has previously taught at the College of New Jersey, Westminster Choir College, and Princeton University.

Recordings: Jane has played on recordings with the Philadelphia Orchestra, the Mozart Orchestra, Orchestra of St. Peter and an Emmy winning recording for NFL films.  She has also played on Frank Sinatra albums including the grammy winning “Duets 11” and recorded music for television specials on Fox, HBO, TNT, and NPR.

Of Note: “I hope to inspire the students to develop their musical abilities to the fullest and broaden their expectations through listening to professional performances.”  From WCU faculty profiles

Julia Rose   

Born: Cedar Rapids, IA

Teachers/Schools: B. Mus. from the University of Wisconsin-Madison, and additional studies at the Oberlin Conservatory of Music.  Her primary teachers were Douglas Hill and Gwen Anderson; she has also taken lessons with Dale Clevenger, John Zirbel, Gail Williams, David Krehbiel, William Caballero, William Ver Meulen, Charles Kavalovsky and David Kamminga.

Prizes: in 2002 she was a finalist in the American Horn Competition, and finished 2nd place in 1999; she also placed 1st place at the 2000 International Women's Brass Conference Solo Competition, and was the 1996 winner of the New World Symphony Concerto Competition.

Orchestras: Julia has been the Associate Principal Horn/3rd Horn for the Columbus Symphony Orchestra since 1997; she played Co-Principal Horn for the New World Symphony from 1994-1997 and played Co-Principal with the National Repertory Orchestra in 1996.

Of Note: Julia has a great web site called Julia Rose's Horn Page where she has posted the audition lists of over 50 orchestras, plus notes she has taken at master classes given by horn greats such as Arnold Jacobs and Dave Krehbiel.

Michelle Stebleton 

Born:  Michigan

Schools/Teachers: B.M. University of Michigan (1988);
 M.M. University of Michigan (1989); has studied with Lowell Greer, Louis J. Stout, Douglas Campbell, John Jacobson, and Dorothy Stehl; diploma from the Prague Mozart Academy in the Czech Republic.

Symphonies/Chamber Groups: Principal horn with the FSU Chamber Orchestra and Tallahassee Symphony and former principal with the Midland-Odessa Symphony; member of the Florida State Brass Quintet and horn duet Mirror Image with Lisa Bontrager.

Awards: First prize HIS Workshop Competition, 1987; First prize in the College division of the American Horn Competition and second prize in the natural horn competition, 1989; tied for second place at the American Horn Competition in the professional division, 1994 and 1999; received the Teaching Incentive Program award to recognize outstanding teaching at the university level.

Teaching: Has taught at Florida State University since 1990

Summer Festivals: Has taught at the Sewanee Summer Music Festival since 2002

Virginia Thompson 

Born: N/A

Teachers/schools: Dr. Thompson holds degrees from the University of Iowa and the University of Arizona; principal teachers were Paul Anderson and Dale Clevenger.

Symphonies: has performed with the Pittsburgh Symphony, the Orquesta Sinfonica de Jalapa in Mexico, and other symphonies throughout the United States.  She has also performed at many IHS workshops.

Teaching: Is currently the horn professor at West Virginia University.

Of note: Currently serving as the IHS president, she has also served as news editor, secretary/treasurer, and on the advisory council; she has also written numerous articles for the journal. 

Joan Watson

Born: Canada

Teachers/Schools: B. Mus. Perf. University of Victoria; has studied with Richard Ely, Christopher Leuba, Dale Clevenger and Arnold Jacobs.

Symphonies/Chamber Groups: Currently principal horn with the Canadian Opera Orchestra; former associate principal horn of the Toronto Symphony Orchestra 1988-2002 and former principal horn with the Victoria Symphony and Vancouver Opera Company Orchestra; performances with the Pacific Opera Orchestra, Espit Orchestra; a founding member of the True North Brass and member of the Canadian Wind Quintet.

Recordings: Her first solo album “Songs My Mother Taught Me” is available on the Peros label.

Teaching: Teaches at the University of Toronto and the Glenn Gould Professional School at the Royal Conservatory of Music.

Of Note: “In the past, I sometimes practiced up to eight hours a day. Now, with a family, gigs and students, I practice in small bursts and find myself learning quite a lot away from the instrument by singing, listening to CD's, and analyzing scores. I spent some years studying with a vocal coach who taught me that the vibration inside you is of primary importance. Staying relaxed and taking a good breath is essential to keep that vibration healthy. Effortless efficiency is my goal.”  Interview of Joan Watson taken from www.chasesanborn.com/articles

Frøydis  Ree Wekre 

Born: Norway

Teachers/Schools: Studied with Wilhelm Lansky-Otto and Vitali Bujanovsky.

Symphonies: Norwegian Opera Orchestra, the Oslo Philharmonic and orchestras throughout Europe, Canada and the United States.  She is also an active soloist in Europe and North America.

Teaching: California Institute of the Arts, California State University at Northridge; currently teaching at the Norwegian State Academy of Music.  Froydis is renowned equally as a performer and a teacher.

Of note: Froydis is the author of “On Playing the Horn Well” and has numerous works written for her such as Invitation to a Voyage and Dream of the Rhinoceros, both by Trygve Madsen.  She has also commissioned works for horn, including Songs of the Wolf  by Andrea Clearfield.  A past HIS president, Froydis is known for having coined the term “prunes.”  Huh?  Froydis explains: “Whatever a prune may be to an American, to a European a prune is a small, sweet delight.”  Check out her ‘Froydis’ Favorite Prunes’ volumes I, II, and III for short, sweet, one movement pieces.

Gail Williams 

Born: Western New York State Teachers/Schools: degrees from Ithaca College and Northwestern University; honorary Doctorate of Music from Ithaca College; considers retired horn professor John Covert her biggest musical influence: “Jack is an amazing teacher and an amazing person.  He influenced my decision to go into music full time—quite a switch, because I was originally going to be a phys ed major at Ithaca.”  Taken from International Musician October 2001

Symphonies/Chamber Groups: A former principal horn of the Lyric Opera of Chicago, Gayle Williams joined the Chicago Symphony Orchestra in 1979; she was appointed Associate Principal Horn in 1984 which she held until her retirement in 1998. She is also a Founding member of the Chicago Chamber Musicians and Summit Brass and has appeared as a featured soloist with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, San Antonio Symphony, Sinfonia da Camera, New World Symphony Orchestra, the Grand Teton Music Festival Orchestra, Syracuse Symphony, and a number of regional orchestras.

Teaching: She has taught at Northern Illinois University and DePaul University, and is currently the horn professor at Northwestern University, a position she has held since 1989.

Summer Festivals: is currently Principal Horn of the Grand Teton Music Festival Orchestra.

Of Note: A firm proponent of original music for horn, she has performed and commissioned new works by composers such as Dana Wilson and Anthony Plog (check out Anthony Plog’s unaccompanied work for horn Postcards, written for Gail Williams).  An avid runner (“I’ve done a couple of marathons”) she describes herself as “kind of an exercise nut” who strongly feels a player needs to be in shape to play the horn well.  "I think the biggest thing we as women musicians can say, actually, is not to say anything at all. We should let our playing speak for itself, rather than the other way around."  From International Musician October 2001

Sarah Willis   

Born: in U.S.A.; grew up in England

Teachers/Schools: started playing horn at the age of 14 and began studying with Anthony Gray at the Royal College junior department; attended the Guildhall School of Music and Drama and studied with Anthony Halstead, Jeffrey Bryant and Hugh Seenan; upon graduation was awarded a scholarship to study with Fergus McWilliam of the Berlin Philharmonic.

Symphonies: Berlin State Opera, guest fourth horn with the Chicago Symphony, Consortium Classicum, and most recently fourth horn with the Berlin Philharmonic.

Of note:  Sarah is the first woman brass player to be a member of the Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra.  To win the position she endured an all day audition held in front of the entire orchestra without a screen.  After being narrowed down to two players, the audition culminated with a ‘duel’ of excerpt between Sarah and the other finalist.  Of the audition Sarah says, ”I have never prepared for anything as intensively as I did for this audition.  I did absolutely everything I could; yoga, jogging, eating healthy foods, and of course practicing like never before….I would…record myself on a DAT machine and listen to every aspect of it.”  --quote and information taken from British Horn Society Magazine fall 2001; other information provided by Valerie Stygall.