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The Dragonhorn

Topaz shows you the Dragonhorn. "You want to know about me and Tibet's Dragonhorn rounds? Sure! Well, let's start at the top!..."

Hair, Hats & Make Up.
"Dragonhorn players usually wear a large green hat with a fern in the brim. I actually can't because the fern leans to one side and spoils the balance on Tibet and I fall off! If you use the propor fern (and only the best will do) they're very heavy!
"The good thing about this is that the masters of the Dragonhorn get terrible hat-head and I don't! Usually I brush it 'til it floats and just leave it down. I tried putting a fern in my hair once but it kept falling out.
"And the masters of the Dragonhorn players wear 'circles' of red face-paints, as in, you know, rosy cheeks! I do that too, but I think it looks a bit tacky. But still, tradition is tradition."

The Dragonhorn
"The Dragonhorn is made of jet. Or at least something Dinotopian...and very close. The darker black they are, the better the Dragonhorn. That's because all the impurities have been removed, and it takes alot of work to do that. Mine isn't dark black, it just looks it because I spent so much time trying to polish it, and blacken it so it looks like...well, you get the idea.
"All the golden parts you can see are made of solid gold, a base metal in Dinotopia. Well, when you reach the top of the ranks they're solid gold, when you brgin your apprenticeship they're made of brass, it gets better at you move up (see "Apprenticeship", below). I could explain in more detail about all the valves, and how the Horn works, but it's really confusing; even I don't understand half of it sometimes. Yes, of course I'm lying. *big grin*.
"Now let's look at the head! :

Now, you can't really tell it on the picture, but the Eye is red. It's a small chip of a Ruby Sunstone! That amplifies the sound the Horn slightly. Of course i's breath-control really, that makes the sound so powerful. But sometimes the players run out of breath, so the Sunstone can really help. It's only in the final part of a player's apprenticeship that they recieve a big horn, complete with Sunstone Eye. Yes, mine is Sunstone. No, don't touch it, please. Thanks. It's just that it takes me ages to polish it up!"

Apprenticeship
"Now, in a minute I'm going to show you one of my cute little baby pictures. Please don't laugh!
"Anyway, apprenticeship to become a Dragonhorn Master takes an extremly long time. Actually, my apprenticeship didn't take very long. Music always was one of my gifts. So...here's the traditional way to learn to be a Master of the Dragonhorn! :
" "First of all, when the students first start their apprenticeship, they are given a small brass, bent tube, with no markings. they basically have to practice making a noise. This takes a while. Then, when they've done that, they get a thin, green band on their horn. Every time they get one of these it is known that they've reached a "milestone". Everytime they reach a "milestone", they get a band on their Horn! 4thin bands (about 1cm thick each) = one thick band (about an inch thick). The bands are 1/2cm apart. When the playor has two thick bands, it's time to move up one Horn. And so on. Here's what to do for the first thick band:

  • Make a noise (very hard, that)
  • make a noticable distinction between loud and quiet noises
  • Produse one note that can go from loud to quiet, then back again [or vice virca]
  • produce a scale [eight notes in a row, going from loud to quiet; not joined]
  • Then, in order to get the first thick band, the apprentice has to learn avery simple piece, chosen by the teacher, to suit the pupil

    "That's what you have to do to get your first thick band! well, yeah, I suppose it's reallt five things: four for the thin bands and then one for the thick. It's a bit like buying hotels in Monopoly, isn't it?!!" you don't know what Monopoly is, but is sure sounds like fun.
    "After you've moved up one Horn, you get another horn that's just a little better. I think it's the 4th horn that you get a bit of jet, but I do know for certain it's the 6th one that you get a Ruby Sunstone Chip (there's nine Horns in total). After the forth Horn you only need one thick band to move on, but the thin bands take a long time to get, and it goes up in big jumps (for example, for the 1st you need to learn hip-hop-jump quavers, and for the second you need to get the hang of about 6 other complicated moves and put them into a piece).
    "Do you want me to explain the horns? OK! :

  • Horn 1: slightly bent tube

  • Horn 2: a bit better, simple valves

  • Horn 3: more valves. It is with this Horn that the Apprentice learns to use the Horn in more complicated ways (for example, for the 2nd thin band of the 1st thick one - phew!! - students can use the valves to make noises like two notes at once!)

  • Horn 4: Mini resemblance to Horn 9, but no Dragon's head. A bit of jet, but very impure.

  • Horn 5: Exactly the same as Horn 4, but about twice the weight. This is so the students can get used to the really heavy Horn 9.

  • Horn 6: Heavier than horn 5, but with Dragon Head, and Ruby Sunstone Chip! For the thick band of this Horn the students learn how to use this Chip to their advantage, tricks and methods of geting used to it, and how the Mouth can also amplify the sound (and also how to make the Horn really sound like a Dragon! This is never used in profesional play, but often can be a fun party-piece and a good source for practical jokes). The jet of this Horn is still impure.

  • Horn 7: A much bigger Horn than all the others, this Horn is not quite as heavy as, but is the same size as Horn 9 (what is known as the Ultimate Horn). The jet on this is very pure, not not quite as good as it can be. You can tell it is not exactly 100% pure. Mine is a Horn 7. I polish it so hard it really does look like Horn 9! But it's not. Heheh. This horn is as heavy as the Ultimate, and is also exactly as big. This is also the first Horn that is...solid gold!!! With the others, it is only the brass that gets more and more shiny; this horn is gold. And the amount of time I spend polishing it up, I'd jolly well hope you can tell it's gold!

  • Horn 8: An exact replica of the Ultimate Horn. The jet looks 100% pure, though it isn't. The bands go onto the only avalible space: the small amount of gold right at the start of the Horn, near the Mouthpiece (see the piccy at the top). With this Horn the students learn the most advanced and complicated movements that can be done on a Dragonhorn.

  • Horn 9: The Ultimate Horn. With this Horn the apprentices learn how to make up their own songs, and also - as they will very soon be Masters of the Dragonhorn themselves - how to teach their apprentices how to get where they are! There are no bands to be "won" with this Horn, the teacher decides when the student is ready. Then the two - teacher and pupil - prepare a piece for the student to perform a concert. Straight after the concert, the student relieves a small cup, and a patch to sew onto their new Master Uniform! :
    Their Apprenticeship is now complete.

    "Well, that's it!" says Topaz. "Everything there is to know about the Dragonhorn!"
    "Er....wait a minute! Where's your baby picture?" you say.
    "I wondered if you'd remember!" laughs Topaz. She opens The Box that you saw when you looked round the Hanger, and pulls out an old canvas. She blows the dust off it, and shows you her only baby picture!

    "Hey, I said don't laugh!! OKOKOK, here is me...on Horn 2!! (see the Bands? I maybe didn't mention they're actually painted onto the Horn)."

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