I've played horn since 1995, but in 2001 my left arm was almost ripped off in a car accident. There was severe neurological damage, I lost 4 inches off the arm and it's partially atrophied. I still have decent finger motion, but my arm isn't able to support a horn for long, even after years of therapy and a workout every day. Is there anything anyone knows about that I could do so I could play again? I'm weighing my options now before I pick a new horn or start assembling one (and yes, I do mean from a pile of parts.)

Anyone else had a real big injury like this?

There are two things that can help you. One is a "Pip Stick" and the other is possibly a different physical therapist.

I have not had an injury like your arm injury. However, I did have an accident that damaged my neck and back. I have injury to C1,C4,C7,T1,T4,and T10. It was serious enough they had me on a very aggresive drug cocktail therapy that is used for broken necks.

I had several physical therapists who were all good, I thought, except I made very little recovery. The surgeon I had didn't want to do the surgery and ended up sending me to someone he thought would do better for me. Perhaps the best neck and back surgeon in the area. This god of a surgeon asked that I try one more physical therapist. This guy was a miracle! He went to the extremes and when I was done with a session I went home and slept. He has gotten me to point where I did not need surgery and my muscles compensate for the damaged discs. I can play volley ball aggresively and carry car transmissions by myself.

So, I wonder if the right physical therapist could help you use alternate muscles to compensate for your loss.

The "pip stick" or "horn stick" is a rod that rests on your left thigh and connects to the center of the horn and it helps to relieve the weight and pressure. I have not seen them used much in the USA but I have seen them used (even in professional venues) in the UK. This would certainly allow ytou to play for a longer period of time.

Regarding therapy - unfortunately the laws in many states and the insurance policies of many insurance carriers do not allow you to just go to any physical therapist of your choice. You have to have a presecription. I don't know why because you don't need a script to go to an accupunturist or a chiropractor. Anyway, if you want to explore possible exercises to build up or compensate for your arm injury let me know through the PM (private message). We would need to exchange email addresses as I would need more information about your injury, perhpas copies of the doctors description(s), etc. I could review the info with my therapist who I am very good friends with (it turns out he is a trombone player and went to the college in the next town to the college I went to and we now play together in groups).

But certainly get a Pip-stick or Horn-stick.

Have you considered a natural horn? They are as light as a feather compared to double horns and you don't have to use your left hand for anything except holding it. The right hand does all the work. Google natural horns and you'll find several people who make and sell them for a reasonable price. With a good teacher, you'd be amazed at what you can accomplish on a natural horn.

Another option would be to have a right handed double horn made. A few years ago, I contacted Conn-Selmer about a handicapped student who wanted to play horn but was missing digits on her left hand. They offered to make her a reverse Conn 8D for the price of a regular 8D. Quite a deal for a custom made instrument! Conn-Selmer has since been bought out by Stienway, but this new company might be willing to do the same thing. Yamaha might as well. Can't hurt to ask.

BTW, I have heard of a few horn makers that have right handed horns to sell. I think one was a Finke dealer in Arizona. It might be worth checking out all the music stores you can.

Still another option would be a five valve Bb horn. It's lighter than a standard double horn and can do just about anything a double horn can do. Perhaps you could even find a right handed five valve Bb horn????

Valerie Wells
http://www.beforhorn.blogspot.com/

Hornstick:
http://www.rimskys-horns.com/eng/Hansrensenhornstick.html

The horn stick looks great. I believe a support would be a good thing to help any player be more relaxed when they play. But, I've always wondered how you would dump the water from a horn with a stick attached. It seems awkward, but I guess it's something we could get used to.

Horns are just awkward instruments to begin with all the weight held out in front. And, I don't think any other instrument presents the physical challenges the horn does when it comes to all the twisting & turning, pulling of slides, etc. we do just to drain the water. Can you imagine if tubas had to be twirled around like that?

Thanks for posting the link.

Valerie Wells
http://www.beforhorn.blogspot.com/

Twisting and turning and pulling and prodding? What kind of Horn do you have? Egads!.
I only have to twist and twirl my horn when I play Brahms, Mahler, or Katcheturian.

Well, usually all I need is to press the water key, or pull the F slide. But at the end of a reharsal I turn my horn 3/4 of a turn and back, and pull one slide to drain the whole instrument. I play a Holton Merker with the wrap that was designed for easy draining.

I see other horn players, many of whom play horns with the same wrap, who have rediculous draining rituals practically dismantling their instruments in the middle of sensitive pieces. Sheesh! It drives me nuts. I'm embarassed to admit it, but it's kinda of a "pet peeve" of mine. If I had the technological tools and savvy, I'd make a youtube video demonstrating how to drain a horn w/o pulling out all the slides. I'd love to prove to horn world that a double horn can be drained w/o the necessity of pulling every single slide on the instrument. I don't know about triples because I've never played one.

But, all that aside, we never see trumpet players, trombone players or euphonium players going through such contortions to drain their instruments.

Valerie Wells
http://www.beforhorn.blogspot.com/

I don't know about never. A Bb/F trombone with a bunch of turns in the tubing might need to empty the F tuning slide, and I know my band director owns a trumpet with essentially no spit valve (it has one, but it's pretty much a POS).

Val, YOu bring up a GREAT and very important point.

Yes, it drives me crazy when I see someone pulling every single slide in the middle of a sensitive spot. I have a little paragraph I give to my teacher freinds about emptying the Horns. It takes 12 seconds to empty the whole horn (smoothly and calmly).

It's really important for all of us to be aware of when and how we empty our horns. Pulling and clanking the slides while the clarinet and flute are doing a soft duet is NOT acceptable. Don't distract the audience with sounds or motions.

I wish someone would invent a horn that drains itself as you play.

Valerie

What if we developed a heating unit for the horn? Much of the condensation is warm air cooling down against thee cool metal (supposedly).So, if we could hook up an anode and cathode to raise the temperature of the instrument so it match the temperature of our air there would be less condensation.

OF course by heating the instrument it would play higher so we would have to trim the horn down in size a little bit, but nothing a really good repair person with good skills in fluid dynamic logarithims couldn't do.

Valerie, I think you have come up with a great outside the box idea!

HAH! Let's do it. I'll apply for the patent. The John-Val anti-condensation device for brass instruments. We'll make a fortune.

Valerie Wells
http://www.beforhorn.blogspot.com/



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But . . . every horn in the universe could be outfitted with one, and it still wouldn't still woudln't stop some horn players from dismantling their instruments every time they have a 5 measure rest!