It’s that time of year!! Just in case you haven’t finished your shopping yet, here are a few gift ideas for the musically-oriented in your life.
For The Youngest Among Us:
I have very fond childhood memories of listening over and over and OVER again to a few beloved records. They’re sold as CDs now, of course, but you know what I mean. Some of my favorite classical music children’s records are Tubby the Tuba, Peter and the Wolf, and Fantasia (this one is a DVD). You have multiple choices for each of them.
A horn-shaped kazoo: these are so much fun. Especially when you give it a name like Corzoo and write silly stories about it. Great for kids to experiment using their voices.
For Those Just Starting the Horn:
Cleaning Set: There are various cleaning kits out there, often geared towards the brand of horn used. The key elements of a cleaning set in my opinion are a snake, mouthpiece brush, valve oil, slide grease, cloth. You could even put your own together if you can’t find one that has the exact elements you’d like. If your cleaning kit doesn’t come with a booklet, you could print this page out to include with your kit:
A tuner or metronome, or combination of the two: I think the Korg TM-40 is a fantastic tool to have. It is a combination tuner/metronome and is a decent price. For someone more advanced who needs more volume and more features in a metronome, I like the Tama Rhythm Watch. It’s not as pricey as a Dr. Beat, but has all the features I have ever needed. Although, the Dr. Beat does have this fun option of a voice yelling the beats at you, which has provided more than a few laughs in chamber music rehearsals, I must admit. “One! Two! One! Two!”
For the advancing horn player:
Philip Farkas, The Art of French Horn Playing – Every horn player should have this!
Membership for the International Horn Society – With membership, your horn-playing loved one will receive The Horn Call, a publication of the society, that is stock full of great resources and information. This is one of the best places to find out about horn workshops, camps, competitions, and scholarships.
For the College Musician/ Young Professional:
Play with a Pro Gift Certificate: this stunning site is an invaluable resource for everyone, but an especially appropriate gift for an advanced student and those looking to get started soon in their careers. The horn player featured is Radovan Vlatkovic, a musician of impeccable taste. You won’t want to miss what he has to say! It’s a great gift for those of other instruments as well. (Full disclosure: my husband is one of the featured trumpet players). 🙂 Everything about this project masterminded by Adam Simonsen – from the substance of the interviews and masterclasses to the cinematography and production value – is of the highest quality!
The Orchestral Audition Repertoire for Horn: Complete and Unabridged, compiled by David Thompson: If the horn player in your life is super serious and ready to start taking orchestral auditions, this gift will come in very handy!
The Orchestra Musician’s CD-ROM Library: This is a CD alternative to Thompson’s collection, for those who prefer everything to be digitized. It is a very complete collection. Great resource!
EZseatU: If your music lover/horn player lives in the Philadelphia area, check out this great option for college-age students. Students pay $25 and get unlimited concerts throughout the season.
For Any Music Lover:
A subscription to the BBC Music Magazine: This is a perfect gift for absolutely anyone who is a lover of music. I subscribed to this magazine as a college student, and it provided me a fantastic education about what was happening worldwide in classical music. Also, it comes with a CD each month – a great way to expand your listening library and get to know some things that you might not have necessarily picked up on your own.
This is obviously just a small slice of potential gift ideas, but a good place to start. Also consider a gift subscription to whatever orchestra, chamber music series, or opera company that is close by the person you are buying for. There’s nothing like the gift of live music!
Sending you warmest wishes for a very Merry Christmas, Happy Hanukkah, and a Happy New Year full of good times with family and friends!
