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  • Episode #12 - Audrey Flores
    Nov 26 2025
    The Horn Signal is proudly brought to you by Bob Reeves Brass. Join hosts John Snell and Preston Shepard as they interview horn players around the world. Today's episode features Audrey Flores, NYC freelancer and Broadway horn player. About Audrey: Audrey Flores is a freelancing horn player in New York City. She attended the Juilliard School and the Mannes College of Music, and regularly plays in Broadway productions and with orchestras in the tri-state area. She plays a 2017 Patterson Triple Horn with a medium-wide hand-hammered bell. Audrey spends most of her time performing as a Broadway freelancer. She began playing as a substitute on Disney's The Lion King in 2012, where she quickly was designated as an approved player for the Horn I position. In 2015, she was designated to perform the solo book at Disney's Aladdin, and went on to become designated for both Horn I and II at Frozen in 2016. She was also designated for both Horn I and II at King Kong in 2017. She has been a chairholder at Paper Mill Playhouse in Millburn, NJ; Westport Playhouse in Westport, CT; at Plaza Productions in Elmont, NY; and at the Delaware Theatre Company in Wilmington, DE. She has also worked for the Roundabout Theatre Company. She can be heard on album recordings for She Has Risen, an all-female concept album of Jesus Christ Superstar, and on Lempicka - A New Musical that is currently in its pre-Broadway run. Audrey is appearing as Principal Horn of the Princeton Symphony at different times during the 2022-2023 season. She served as Acting Principal Horn of the Columbus Symphony Orchestra in Ohio for the 2017-2018 season. Formerly Principal Horn of both the Allentown Symphony and Symphony in C in Camden, NJ, Audrey has also played with the New World Symphony, the Princeton Symphony, the Miami Symphony Orchestra, the New Jersey Festival Orchestra, the Distinguished Concerts International Orchestra of New York, the Jerusalem Symphony, the American Ballet Theatre, the New York Philharmonic, the Mariinsky Orchestra, and the Orpheus Chamber Ensemble. She was a musician in the Radio City Christmas Spectacular Orchestra in 2019, 2018, 2012 and 2011, and in the New York Spectacular in the summer of 2016. She is also a proud member of Russ Anixter's Hippie Big Band, and appears with them in various venues in NYC. Audrey released her first solo album in June 2017. It includes sonatas and solo pieces by Gliere, Madsen, Krol, and Ketting, and also features the premiere recording of Barbara York's Sonata for Horn. It was acclaimed by several brass publications, and is available for purchase and streaming on iTunes, Apple Music, Amazon, Spotify, YouTube, CD Baby, and many other platforms worldwide. A frequent soloist and chamber musician, she has performed with the Jupiter Chamber Players, the OMNI Ensemble, and was featured as a soloist with Symphony in C for a performance of the Britten Serenade for Tenor, Horn, and Strings. Most recently, she has performed as a soloist with the Broadway Bach Ensemble, performing Strauss's First Horn Concerto in 2015 and Schumann's Konzertstuck for Four Horns in 2017. She has also performed at the Sunriver Music Festival in Sunriver, OR, the Manchester Music Festival in Manchester, VT, the Vermont Mozart Festival in Burlington, VT, the National Repertory Orchestra, and as a part of the Bravo! Vail Summer Music Festival. Audrey also enjoys a full teaching schedule in addition to pursuing a varied career. Audrey is the newest member of the Horn Faculty team at the Juilliard MAP Program. She is a Teaching Artist for Midori and Friends, an organization in New York City that works in tandem with the Department of Education to supplement and provide music instruction for public school students. She taught beginning and intermediate brass at the Edward Said National Conservatory of Music in Palestine in 2006, and coached chamber music for the Juilliard Pre-College Program in 2005. She specializes in teaching beginning brass students. Audrey is also the staff music arranger for the Patriot Brass Ensemble, a 501(c)3 that performs concerts in long-term care facilities for veterans of the United States. Her arrangements have been featured on NBC's Late Night with James Corden, NBC's The Voice, CBS's Late Show with Stephen Colbert, Entertainment Tonight, Inside Edition, Paramount Pictures events, New York Fashion Week events, various Improv Everywhere productions, and on several Patriot Brass Ensemble programs and corporate events across the country. She also performs as a brass musician with PBE as a member of the large brass ensemble, the brass quintet, and the horn quartet. She is also a member of the newly formed Patriot Concert Brass, and serves as Secretary of the Patriot Brass Ensemble Board of Trustees. In addition to her busy performing career, Audrey is training to become a Certified Music Practitioner through the Music for Healing and Transition Program. She ...
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    1 Std. und 28 Min.
  • Episode #11 - Julie Pilant
    Oct 29 2025

    The Horn Signal is proudly brought to you by Bob Reeves Brass. Join hosts John Snell and Preston Shepard as they interview horn players around the world. Today's episode features Julie Pilant, formerly of the Met, now with Utah Symphony.

    About Julie:

    Julia Pilant is currently the acting 3rd horn for the Utah Symphony/Utah Opera, and a regular guest with the Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra horn section and the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center. Previously, she was the assistant principal horn for the Metropolitan Opera Orchestra for 14 years and a horn instructor for the Bard College Conservatory of Music for 16 years. Prior to holding those positions, she was the principal horn of the Syracuse Symphony Orchestra for 10 years. Ms. Pilant also freelanced for several decades in New York City and performed regularly with Orpheus Chamber Orchestra, Orchestra of St. Luke's, New York City Ballet, and numerous Broadway shows. She has played principal horn for the Saito Kinen/Ozawa and Tokyo Opera Nomori music festivals, the Mito Chamber Orchestra in Japan, and has participated in the Santa Fe Chamber, Affinis (Japan), Sarasota, Festival Napa Valley, Classical Tahoe, Strings, Mainly Mozart, and La Jolla Music Society Summerfest music festivals. In 1994 she won the American Horn Competition. As an equally enthusiastic music educator, she has given masterclasses in schools and festivals across the country, including The Juilliard School, USC, Interlochen Arts Camp, and the Boston University Tanglewood Institute, and is a founding member of the recently formed Coalition of Musicians for Ethical Change. Ms. Pilant received her Bachelor's degree from Eastman School of Music (student of Verne Reynolds), and her Master's and Doctoral degrees from The Juilliard School (student of Julie Landsman).

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    1 Std. und 33 Min.
  • Episode #10 - Phil Yao
    Oct 1 2025

    The Horn Signal is proudly brought to you by Bob Reeves Brass. Join hosts John Snell and Preston Shepard as they interview horn players around the world. Today's episode features Phil Yao, Hollywood studio hornist.

    About Phil:

    With over 1,500 credits in film, television and recording, USC graduate Phillip Yao has worked with many of the world's top composers and musicians including John Williams, James Horner, Michael Giacchino and Jerry Goldsmith.

    He can be heard on recordings showcasing a variety of artists from all genres; Hilary Hahn, Barbra Streisand, Aerosmith, Ray Charles, and Neil Diamond, to name a few.

    In addition, he has years of orchestral, opera, ballet, and Broadway show experience having been a member of the Pasadena Symphony and playing with the Pacific Symphony, Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra, Los Angeles Opera, Phantom of the Opera and Miss Saigon.

    He and his wife, harpist, Alison Bjorkedal, currently spend time gardening, golfing, and beekeeping. They also enjoy spending time with Phil's 3-year old grandson. Post-playing, Phil has joined the team at Juliani Music Preparation.

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    1 Std. und 22 Min.
  • Episode #9 - David Everson
    Sep 5 2025

    The Horn Signal is proudly brought to you by Bob Reeves Brass. Join hosts John Snell and Preston Shepard as they interview horn players around the world. Today's episode features Dave Everson, formerly of Detroit Symphony Orchestra and LA studio hornist.

    About Dave:

    David Everson, retired Assistant Principal Horn of the Detroit Symphony Orchestra, joined the DSO in 1999 after serving as Principal Horn of the Kansas City Symphony for 13 years. A Michigan native and student of Louis Stout at the University of Michigan, he has also performed as guest Principal with ensembles including the Los Angeles Philharmonic, National Symphony, and St. Paul Chamber Orchestra. Everson is active as a studio musician in Los Angeles, where he has recorded more than 150 film scores, and he continues to perform with the Naples Philharmonic and freelance in LA.

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    58 Min.
  • Episode #8 - Gina Gillie
    Jul 23 2025

    The Horn Signal is proudly brought to you by Bob Reeves Brass. Join hosts John Snell and Preston Shepard as they interview horn players around the world. Today's episode features Gina Gillie, hornist, composer and traveler from the Pacific Northwest.

    About Gina:

    Dr. Gina Gillie is a sought-after composer, teacher, hornist, and traveler. She formerly held the position of Professor of Music at Pacific Lutheran University (2008-2024) where she taught horn, composition, ear training, chamber music, music history, music theory, and music appreciation. While all of Gillie's degrees and training are in Horn Performance, she has been an active composer since 2009, and she is frequently commissioned to write music for chamber ensembles that include brass instruments. In 2022, she was the winner of the IWBC Composition Competition with her trombone octet, Mountain Ascent, and in 2025, she was commissioned to write a brass quintet for the IWBC annual conference. In addition to these honors, Gillie's award-winning body of work was recognized in 2023 with Pacific Lutheran University's K.T. Tang Faculty Excellence Award in Research, and her music is performed internationally in countries including Australia, Belgium, Brazil, Canada, the Philippines, Portugal, Singapore, Spain, Taiwan, and the U.S. Her compositional style incorporates singing melodies, accessible harmonies, and frequent use of counterpoint. Many of her scores are published by Wavefront Music while others are self-published and available in digital format.

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    1 Std. und 22 Min.
  • Episode #7 - Julie Landsman
    Jun 25 2025

    The Horn Signal is proudly brought to you by Bob Reeves Brass. Join hosts John Snell and Preston Shepard as they interview horn players around the world. Today's episode features Julie Landsman, former Principal Horn of the Metropolitan Opera and teacher at University of Southern California.

    About Julie:

    Principal horn with the Metropolitan Opera Orchestra for 25 years, Julie Landsman is a distinguished performing artist and educator. She received a bachelor of music degree from The Juilliard School in 1975 under the tutelage of James Chambers and Ranier De Intinis, and has served as a member of the Juilliard faculty since 1989.

    A native of Brooklyn, New York, Landsman achieved her dream of becoming principal of the MET in 1985 and held that position until 2010. She has also shared her talent to many other ensembles within the city as a current member of the Orpheus Chamber Orchestra and having performed and recorded with the New York Philharmonic. Additionally, she has performed with numerous groups outside the city, including her co-principal position with the Houston Symphony, substitute principal position with the St. Paul Chamber Orchestra, and recent performances with The Philadelphia Orchestra as Associate principal horn, and the Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra, principal horn.

    She has recorded for RCA, Deutsche Gramophone, CRI, Nonesuch and Vanguard labels, and is most famous for her performance of Wagner's "Ring" cycle as solo horn with the MET Opera under the direction of James Levine. Landsman has performed as chamber musician at many festivals and concert series, including the Marlboro Music Festival, Chamber Music Northwest, the Santa Fe Chamber Music Festival, Sarasota Music Festival, La Jolla Summerfest, the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center, Orcas Island Chamber Music Festival, and the Metropolitan Museum of Art, where she appeared as a guest artist with the Guarneri Quartet. In the summers she performs and teaches at the Music Academy of the West , the Sarasota Music Festival, and the Aspen Music Festival.

    World renowned as a master teacher, Julie Landsman holds faculty positions at The Juilliard School and Bard College Conservatory, and teaches frequently as a guest at the Curtis Institute. She has presented master classes at such distinguished institutions as The Colburn School, Curtis Institute, Eastman School of Music, Mannes College of Music, Manhattan School of Music, USC Thornton School of Music, Cal State Long Beach, Rowan University, University of Oklahoma, and University of Southern Mississippi, to name a few. She is also a visiting master teacher at the New World Symphony in Miami. Her international presence includes master classes in Norway, Sweden, and Israel. In 2016 Landsman was an honored jury member at the ARD horn competition in Munich, Germany.

    Her students hold positions in the Metropolitan Opera Orchestra, Philadelphia Orchestra, Los Angeles Philharmonic, San Francisco Opera and Ballet Orchestras, Washington National Opera Orchestra, Dallas Symphony, St. Louis Symphony, New Jersey Symphony, Colorado Symphony, and the American Brass Quintet. She recently received the "Pioneer Award" from the International Women's Brass Conference and was a featured artist at the International Horn Society Conference in 2012 and 2015.

    Her recent series of Carmine Caruso lessons on YouTube have led to further fame and renown among today's generation of horn players. Landsman currently resides in Santa Barbara, California.

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    40 Min.
  • Episode #6 - Bob Watt
    Apr 24 2025
    The Horn Signal is proudly brought to you by Bob Reeves Brass. Join hosts John Snell and Preston Shepard as they interview horn players around the world. Today's episode features Robert Watt, former Assistant Principal Horn of the Los Angeles Philharmonic. Robert Lee Watt was born in Neptune, New Jersey the 4th child of seven. His father, Edward Watt Jr. played trumpet professionally in a Jazz ensemble, "The New Jersey Squires of Rhythm." When Robert was eight years old he got curious about his father's trumpet, kept high on a shelf. Too short to reach it, Robert conscripted his little brother Tony to help. But with Tony on his shoulders he lost his balance, causing both of them to fall to the floor, trumpet in hand. Robert then attempted to fix the dents in the instrument by using a hammer. The badly damaged trumpet was the way Robert's father discovered his interest in horns. After a serious reproach, Robert's father tried to teach him trumpet. However, it wasn't until years later that Robert discovered the instrument he really wanted to play. While helping his father clean out a room in the basement Robert discovered some old 78 recordings. The curious Robert gave the old recordings a spin. It was the "William Tell Overture" on hearing the French horns on that recording he asked his father what instrument came in after the trumpet. His father informed him that it was a "French horn" "A middle instrument that never gets to play the melody like the trumpet…why, do you like that horn?" His father asked. Robert replied, "It gives me chills when I hear it, I love it. That's what I want to play." His father informed the young Robert that it really wasn't the instrument for him. Explaining that it was an instrument for thin-lipped white boys. "Your lips are too thick to play that small, thin, mouthpiece. You'd be better suited for the trumpet like you father." Upon reaching high school Robert seriously pursued the French horn. Approaching the band director of his high school in Asbury Park, Robert was again told that his lips were too thick to play the French horn. After being persistent, the band director gave Robert an old French horn that barely worked. Nevertheless, Robert advanced quickly and was soon winning auditions for honor bands and orchestras throughout the state of New Jersey, bringing great honor to his high school. After high school Robert was accepted to the New England Conservatory of Music in Boston where he majored in music and studied French horn with Harry Shapiro of the Boston Symphony. Mr. Shapiro took great interest in Robert pushing him hard. At the end of his first year Mr. Watt was asked to perform the Strauss Horn Concerto No. 1, with the Boston Pops Orchestra under Arthur Fiedler. The following summer he received a fellowship to the Berkshire Music Festival at Tanglewood. Returning to the Conservatory for his third year Mr. Watt was informed by the president's office that the Conservatory had financial problems and that all scholarships would be canceled for the coming year. At the end of his junior year at the Conservatory Mr. Watt was informed by his French horn teacher that it was time for him to audition for a position in a major symphony orchestra. On the advice of his teacher, Mr. Watt chose Los Angeles and Chicago. When Mr. Watt returned from his audition journey, he had made the finals at both auditions. Two months later The Los Angeles Philharmonic offered him the position of Assistant First Horn. Making him the first African American French horn player hired by a major symphony orchestra in the United States. Mr. Watt joined the ranks of only a handful of African Americans playing in symphony orchestras in these United States. According to the American Symphony Orchestra League, that represented less than 2% of the total, out of twenty-six top orchestras. Mr. Watt held his position until 2007, a career spanning 37 years. Mr. Watt performed several times as soloist with the Los Angeles Philharmonic under Zubin Mehta and several orchestras in the Los Angeles area as well as the Oakland Symphony performing the Richard Strauss Second Horn Concerto While a member of the Los Angeles Philharmonic Mr. Watt has performed with principal and guest conductors that included: Leonard Bernstein, Eugene Ormandy, Eric Leinsdrof, Carla Maria Giulini, Pierre Boulez, Zubin Mehta, Henry Lewis, James De Priest, Michael Tilson Thomas, Herbert Blumstedt, Andre Previn, Marin Alsop, Esa-Pekka Salonen and Christoph Von Dohnányi. Included among the many world renown artists he has performed with were: Yo-Yo Ma, Luciano Pavarotti, Placido Domingo, Jose Carreras, Wynton Marsalias, Henry Mancini, Gladys Night, Isaac Hayes, Quincy Jones, Stevie Wonder, Ray Charles, Barry White, Rihanna, Paula Abdul, Herbie Hancock, Lalo Schifrin, The Carpenters, Benny Carter, Quincy Jones, Bon Jovi, Elton John and film composer, John Williams. He has played on film scores of: ...
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    1 Std. und 54 Min.
  • Episode #5 - Kate Caliendo
    Mar 27 2025

    The Horn Signal is proudly brought to you by Bob Reeves Brass. Join hosts John Snell and Preston Shepard as they interview horn players around the world. Today's episode features Kate Caliendo, 2nd horn of the Jacksonville Symphony.

    About Kate:

    Kate Caliendo enjoys a diverse musical career of symphonic playing, chamber music, recording, soloing and teaching. She is currently Second Horn of the Jacksonville Symphony and has also held Fourth Horn positions with the Houston Symphony and San Antonio Symphony. She is a frequent guest musician with groups including the Kansas City Symphony, Atlanta Symphony, Charleston Symphony, Houston Grand Opera, North Carolina Symphony, Louisiana Philharmonic and the Coastal Symphony of Georgia. As a recorded artist, she is featured on projects with the Kansas City Symphony, Rice University Horn Studio and the Houston Symphony, including their 2018 Grammy Award winning live concert performance of Wozzeck. During the summers, Kate performs with the Bellingham Festival of Music in Washington state, and has also been a musician at Festival Mozaic in California and the Tanglewood Music Center. An avid solo musician, she performed as guest soloist with the Charleston Symphony, and in 2011 commissioned and premiered "Vanishing Points, Six Aural Paintings for Low Horn and Piano" by Rice Doctorate composer Stephen Bachicha. A native of New Jersey, Kate began her musical studies with her father, who was her band director. She was a student of Michelle Baker at the Manhattan School of Music and received her Bachelors and Masters degrees in French Horn Performance from Rice University as a student of William VerMeulen. Her other notable teachers include Dale Clevenger, Julie Landsman, Douglas Lundeen, and Jeff Nelsen.

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    1 Std. und 3 Min.