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In an orchestral score, do I need to indicate 'solo' for wind/brass instruments passages in a shared staff?

In the below example, I have a passage that I want to be played by one horn (solo), but the staff is shared for two. If I'm not indicating 'A due' here, is it enough to understand it's solo or do I need to explicitly say it?

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    You need to say something at least to help the reader figure out which of the two horns should play the part.
    – phoog
    Commented Jun 29 at 15:24

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If only Horn 1 is playing, you should place a “1” above the staff where that part begins.
Similarly, if/when Horn 2 gets to play on its own, place a “2” above the staff.

When both Horn 1 and Horn 2 are playing at the same time:

  • if they they are both playing the same part, write “a 2” (a due) above.
    (If there was another horn sharing this staff then you’d need to be to be more specific with “1,2 a 2”.)
  • if they are playing different parts, it’s probably clear that Horn 1 is the upper voice and Horn 2 is the lower voice, so you won’t need to mark the numbers. But if it’s not obvious for some reason, when the parts have:
    • shared stems, write “1,2” above the staff.
    • stems in opposite directions, write a “1” above the staff and a “2” below.

If the instruction is for the part to be actually played in a soloistic way, instead write “1 solo” or “1,2 soli” etc.

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  • Thanks for the answer! Do you have any score examples that I can check in IMSLP, for example, to understand the dynamics of your suggestions?
    – João Paulo
    Commented Jun 29 at 15:59
  • I feel like the last point about what “solo” means could be expanded. +1 anyway
    – Todd Wilcox
    Commented Jun 29 at 16:39
  • @JoãoPaulo Prokofiev’s Romeo & Juliet ballet, Op. 64 has a few good examples of this notation in the first few pages of the Introduction of Act I. The horn section consists of 6 horns (Corni), but it uses uppercase Roman numerals to number them. The same notation can be seen in the other woodwind and brass parts.
    – Elements In Space ♦
    Commented Jun 29 at 17:54
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    I've never seen "1,2 a 2", but "a2" alone (with or without space) is quite common. It's also common to use roman numerals to indicate which part has to play, in place of arabic ones, often followed by a period. The solo indication may also not require the number, as it's assumed that "solo" is for one (first or third, unless specified) and "soli" for both.
    – musicamante
    Commented Jun 29 at 20:42
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    @MichaelSeifert Yeah, it’s probably unnecessary in most cases, but occasionally Horn 1 can be scored lower than Horn 2.
    – Elements In Space ♦
    Commented Jul 1 at 7:46
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One option if both horn players are performing from the same stave would be to notate the horn 1 part stems up, horn 2 part stems down.

But a direction saying "one player only" is a good idea too - removes any lingering uncertainty.

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