IHS55 Featured Artist
American Horn Quartet
United States
Kerry Turner
​
Kerry Turner has become one of the most recognized names, not only in the horn world but in brass playing in general. Whether as a composer or a performing artist on the horn, he appears regularly on the great concert stages of the world. Mr. Turner’s major ensembles with whom he performs include the world-famous American Horn Quartet, the stunning Virtuoso Horn Duo, and the Luxembourg Philharmonic Orchestra (from which he recently retired, after 35 years with this ensemble). As a member of these prestigious organizations, he has concertized on four continents. He is also a frequently invited soloist and clinician, having performed and taught in Germany, France, Portugal, Switzerland, Japan, the United States, and the Czech Republic, just to name a few.
A native of San Antonio, Texas, Kerry Turner received his Artist Diploma from the Manhattan School of Music in New York and, as a Fulbright Scholar, continued his studies with Hermann Baumann at the Stuttgart College of Music and Performing Arts. Following his studies, he placed 5th at the Geneva International Horn Competition and won the Bronze Medal at the 39th Prague Spring International Music Competition. He is an Honorary Member of the International Horn Society.
Mr. Turner’s compositional career has sky-rocketed over the past several years. His works for horn in combination with virtually every genre of chamber music continue to be heard literally around the world. He has been commissioned by many organizations, including the United States Air Force Heritage of America Band, the Luxembourg Philharmonic, the Japanese Horn Ensemble, and the Richmond, Virginia Chamber Music Society, and many others. He has been awarded top prizes at the International Horn Society Composition Contest as well as the IBLA Foundation. In his spare time, Mr. Turner sings tenor, studies languages (he is fluent in 4 and dabbles in a few others), and loves to cook.
​
Kerry is a Dürk Horns Artist and performs on the new Ab Aeternum model.
Kristina Mascher-Turner
​
Kristina Mascher-Turner, former principal horn of the Brussels Philharmonic Orchestra (Flemish Radio Orchestra), hails from Albany, Oregon, and is once again based in Brussels. She is a graduate of the University of Wisconsin-Madison (Douglas Hill) and the Hanns Eisler Conservatory in Berlin (Kurt Palm) and also studied privately with Fergus McWilliam of the Berlin Philharmonic. Early in her career, she was engaged in various chamber and symphony orchestras, including the Odense Symfoniorkester in Denmark and three tours as principal horn with the Gustav-Mahler-Jugendorchester under the direction of Claudio Abbado, Pierre Boulez, and Kent Nagano. She played full-time with the Luxembourg Philharmonic Orchestra for several years and is a regular guest with orchestras and ensembles around Europe.
She became a member of the world-famous American Horn Quartet in 2009, with whom she has toured and recorded extensively. Kristina is also a member of the Ni Ensemble of Luxembourg (1st prize at the 9th Passau International Chamber Music Competition for Brass Ensembles) and forms with husband Kerry Turner the Virtuoso Horn Duo. Their critically acclaimed albums can be found on the MSR Classics and Naxos labels. She recently joined the Summit Brass and the artist faculty for the Rafael Mendez Brass Institute.
Ms. Mascher-Turner has given master classes and performed in over 30 countries on six continents, widely recognized for her beautiful sound and compelling musicality. She served as Vice President of the International Horn Society from 2015-2021 and was editor of the IHS digital newsletter, "Horn and More.” She received the International Horn Society's prestigious Punto Award in 2022. Horn aside, Kristina sings with a semi-professional vocal octet, has a passion for travel, food, and languages, and is a certified Reiki master.
Kristina performs on a Ricco Kühn W393X triple horn.
Geoffrey Winter
​
Geoffrey Winter grew up in a musical family near Seattle, Washington. His early horn instruction began with Robert Bonnevie (then principal horn with the Seattle Symphony.) Upon starting his university studies, he received instruction from Christopher Leuba, professor of horn at the University of Washington, Seattle. During these early years, he had many opportunities in the Seattle area to play in both youth orchestras and in various chamber music ensembles long before he decided to pursue horn playing as a profession. Later he attended the University of Southern California in Los Angeles where he continued his education with Vince DeRosa and James Decker, both leading hornists in the Hollywood soundtrack recording industry.
After his first professional appointment as Associate Principal Horn with the Orquésta Sinfonica Municipal in Caracas, Venezuela, Mr. Winter later moved to Germany when he won the position as 3./1. Horn with the Philharmonia Hungarica in Marl. Soon afterward in 1985, he was asked to join the American Horn Quartet. Later he was awarded prizes for his skills as a soloist at international music competitions in Markneukirchen, (DDR) and the ARD Competition in Munich (BRD). Since 1988 Mr. Winter has been the principal horn of the Beethoven Orchestra of Bonn, Germany.
Beyond his activities with the AHQ and his orchestra in Bonn, Mr. Winter has had the chance to perform with many other orchestras around the world. He has appeared as a soloist with ensembles such as the Bavarian Radio Orchestra, the Radio Orchestra of Berlin, the Württemberg Chamber Orchestra, and the Beethoven Orchestra. He has also had the opportunity to perform as guest principal horn at the Seattle Wagner Festival, the Ring Festival in Melbourne, Australia as well as with the New Zealand Symphony Orchestra in Wellington. In between these engagements, Mr. Winter can also be found teaching at horn workshops and festivals in and around Germany.
Geoffrey plays a 1978 Paxman 72 XL, one of only three ever built.
Denise Tryon
​
Denise Tryon is the Associate Professor of Horn at the University of Cincinnati CCM. She served as the Horn Professor of the Peabody Conservatory in Baltimore from 2007 – 2019. Since 2019 she is 4th horn of the world renowned American Horn Quartet. Previously, Tryon was fourth horn of The Philadelphia Orchestra (2009-2017).
Tryon graduated from the famed Interlochen Arts Academy and in 1993 received her Bachelor of Music degree from the New England Conservatory of Music (NEC) in Boston. She received the Presidential Scholarship while in the Artist Diploma Program at NEC with the Taiyo Wind Quintet.
An active and accomplished educator, Tryon is sought after for her masterclasses. She has taught extensively in the United States, Scandinavia, Europe, Asia and South America. She’s been a featured artist at many IHS Symposiums and Regional Workshops.
Tryon released her debut solo album, SO•LOW, in 2015. As a part of this album, she commissioned 4 new pieces for low horn and piano.
In 2009, Tryon founded Audition Mode, a yearly horn seminar, with Karl Pituch. The seminar focuses on the skills horn players need to be successful in orchestral auditions.
Denise performs on a Rauch R1 double horn.
"...the American Horn Quartet...is the finest brass chamber ensemble in the world." -American Record Guide
​
Entering its fourth decade and following a hiatus of four years, the American Horn Quartet continues to be unique in the field of brass chamber music. Their exuberant performances have brought audiences all over the world to their feet. In 1982, four American horn players who were working and residing in Europe met for the first time to explore the potential of the horn quartet, a chamber music formation with a surprisingly long tradition. They quickly began to supplement the existing repertoire with their own compositions and arrangements. The group has undergone a few personnel changes since the early days, but has always maintained the highest standards of artistry and technical mastery.
The individual members of the AHQ are all successful soloists in their own right, having won top international competitions in Geneva, Prague, New York, Passau, and Munich. To these accolades, they added top honors with the quartet at chamber music competitions in Barcs, Hungary (Philip Jones Competition), Brussels, and Tokyo.
Besides being featured at horn and brass festivals around the globe, the American Horn Quartet has established itself at regular chamber music concert series on the international circuit. They have also appeared as soloists with numerous symphony orchestras, among them the Royal Stockholm Philharmonic, Sinfonia Varsovia, Philharmonica Hungarica, the Orchestra Sinfonica di Milano Giuseppe Verdi, the Brabants Orchestra of Eindhoven, the Queensland Symphony Orchestra, and the Bordeaux Aquitaine Symphony Orchestra in France, just to name a few.
The AHQ has appeared as featured soloists at several International Horn Society symposia, including Tallahassee, Florida (where they received a five-minute standing ovation after their performance), Kansas City, Indiana, Yamagata, Valencia, Denver, Brisbane, London, and Los Angeles (where they received a five-minute standing ovation before the concert began). Other highlights include performances at the Barbican in London, the Hollywood Bowl in Los Angeles, an appearance with orchestra at the Tonhalle in Zürich, recording collaborations with the horn sections of the New York Philharmonic and the Queensland Symphony Orchestra, a recital in Melbourne, Australia featuring the great horn soloist Barry Tuckwell, and many more.
The American Horn Quartet wishes to thank its former members, especially David Johnson (the founder of the AHQ) and Charles Putnam (whose low horn playing is legendary), and is happy to welcome its newest member, Denise Tryon.
Summing up the career of an ensemble that has accomplished so much, presented hundreds of concerts and masterclasses worldwide, and has produced ten albums, is a difficult task indeed. Therefore we invite you to discover the American Horn Quartet for yourself.