A newly rediscovered horn by Johann Wilhelm Haas - Video overview with Galpin Society Journal article

This repository contains supplementary audiovisual documentation accompanying the article A Newly Rediscovered Horn by Johann Wilhelm Haas, by Jeroen Billiet, Anneke Scott and Mark De Merlier, forthcoming in The Galpin Society Journal (March 2027). The article presents an organological and artistic investigation of a recently rediscovered natural horn in D, manufactured around 1700 by the Nürnberg instrument maker Johann Wilhelm Haas (1649–1723). Discovered in eastern France in 2023 by Mark De Merlier and restored to playable condition by Luc Gallois in 2025, the instrument is one of only six documented surviving horns by Haas and the only known example in D. As part of the Haas Horn Lab, a research project conducted at the Koninklijk Conservatorium Brussel, the restored instrument was subjected to a series of experimental playing sessions involving an international panel of specialist historical horn players. These sessions explored the instrument’s acoustic and playing characteristics, including resistance, articulation, projection, flexibility, intonation, mouthpiece interaction and the application of hand technique. The supplementary recordings provide audiovisual documentation of these experiments, allowing readers to observe and hear aspects of the instrument’s performance characteristics that cannot be fully conveyed through written description or acoustic measurements alone. The material is organised into two collections: Playlist 1: Historical Performance References A selection of existing performances illustrating different approaches to historical horn playing and providing a broader interpretative context for the research. Playlist 2: Haas Horn Lab: Comparative Performance Trials Eighteen recordings documenting performances on the restored Haas horn and selected reference instruments, including modern reproductions of historical horns. The recordings feature Anneke Scott, Alexandre Zanetta, Georg Köhler, Mariantonía Riezu and Jeroen Billiet, performing excerpts from works by J. S. Bach, G. F. Handel, J. D. Heinichen, G. P. Telemann and J.-P. Rameau. The comparative sessions investigate differences in instrumental response, articulation, sound production and playing technique, while also considering the influence of performers’ familiarity with their own instruments. Together, these recordings constitute an integral part of the study’s methodological approach, combining organological research, restoration documentation and embodied artistic experimentation to contribute to our understanding of early eighteenth-century horn construction and performance practice. Access and preservation: This repository contains a PDF index providing direct hyperlinks to the two YouTube playlists and their individual recordings. The videos are hosted externally and are not themselves archived on Zenodo. Their continued availability depends on the respective hosting accounts and rights holders.