I specialize in cinematic, orchestral Horn solo, and section tracking for Film & TV and have 10 years of experience in various types of performances and recordings with American orchestras, the U.S. Army & U.S. Air Force. I am a trained audio engineer and have access to the gear needed to capture pure audio that will blend with any project.
I will provide you with professional, high-quality, recordings of an experienced Horn player performing your work captured on ultra-linear mic and preamps. I have performed with artists in varying genres such as Indigo Girls, Lee Greenwood, Mac Powell & Wintley Phipps: in shows and musicals such as Cirque du Soleil, Oklahoma, Jurassic Park in Concert: and in orchestral and operatic works with the St. Louis Symphony, Houston Symphony, Houston Ballet, San Antonio Symphony, Richmond Symphony & Louisiana Philharmonic. I can also be heard in the international release Gangubai Kathiawadi. I currently perform as a Horn player with the U.S. Air Force bands.
To capture the most audio possible, I prefer to record in mono in a dry booth with an ultra-linear mic and pre-amp, currently a Slate ML2 to an Audient iD14. My DAW of choice is Reaper and my signal processing, if desired, can include various mic and pre-amp emulations, EQ, Relab Lexicon 480, and/or Abbey Road Plate reverb. However, with the goal of seamless collaboration, I strive to accommodate requests to use different microphones and record in a different space and into a different DAW if need be.
I guarantee clean recordings to allow for maximum flexibility in your project. I enjoy the process of collaborating with others to make music and look forward to working with you on your project!
Send me a note through the contact button above.
30 Reviews - 2 Repeat Clients
Endorse Claude Lumley
check_circleVerifiedthe adds I hoped to get! Takes our piece on the next level. Emphatic and soulful. Great!
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Very good player! Very happy!
check_circleVerifiedClaude delivered expertly recorded and performed tracks! Ill definitely return anytime I need French horn!
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Great recording!
check_circleVerifiedLoved working with Claude. His knowledge base and skillset were a real asset. Loved his willingness to have dialog to ensure the integrity of the music. I'm sure to call on him again soon.
check_circleVerifiedclaude did a great job with a french horn solo for a pop track! thank you again!
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Excellent work. Professional and quality playing. Would love to work with Claude again
check_circleVerifiedI had a very good experience with Claude, he performed a beautiful solo for one of my song. Claude is very easy to communicate with and a very good musician.
check_circleVerifiedThe performance is great! Thanks for playing Claude!
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Claude did an amazing job adding a french horn track to a song I wrote. He improvised a beautiful harmony to go along with key parts of the piece and delivered a strong and vibrant performance. I would love to use him again for a future project and would highly recommend him as well.
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Super fast and easy communication. Claude delivered beautiful French horns for our song and did great improvisations on my request. Will definitely do it again.
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Great playing, great sound and super professional to work with. Highly recommended.
check_circleVerifiedClaude delivered great-sounding tracks, exactly what I was looking for. Easy to work with. Highly recommend. Thank you, Claude. 🙏
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Claude delivered a top quality track for one of my songs, Highly recommended!
check_circleVerifiedClaude was so great to work with! We needed a very quick turnaround time with a french horn recording for a big-budget movie, and he was very helpful, professional, and punctual in delivering the materials. He was also equally experienced in audio engineering and french horn, so he could deliver very high quality recordings and provide advice on how to process his files. Claude was also very friendly and easy to communicate and work with. Definitely going to work with him again!
check_circleVerifiedClaude did an amazing job and it was exactly what we needed. The French Horn is such a beautiful instrument and Claude certainly knows what he's doing. Highly recommended.
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Claude recorded 5 classical pieces for me. He is an amazing artist. His playing is superb - particularly in soft, lyrical melodies where he produces an absolutely beautiful tone. His articulation is extremely clear and really pleasant to listen to, impressively stable pitch. In short a very strong craft, and very high sensitivity in interpretation. Also really professional communication.
check_circleVerifiedClaude was a pleasure to worth with and nailed my instructions first time.
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Claude delivered 3 great-sounding horn tracks in 2 days! He is very good at this! The parts he recorded for me are EXACTLY what I was looking for.
check_circleVerifiedClaude is a very talented french horn player. He takes direction very well and delivered exactly what I wanted for my indie pop/rock song, at a super reasonable price. His playing fit in really nicely with my song & he'll definitely be my go-to horn player if I ever need one again.
Interview with Claude Lumley
Q: Tell us about a project you worked on you are especially proud of and why. What was your role?
A: I have recorded quite a few cues for people, remotely, over the last year. My work that has been made public can be heard on my website: https://claudelumley.myportfolio.com/listen
Q: What are you working on at the moment?
A: I work on multiple online session platforms, recording cues for people around the world. I'm also constantly preparing live music to be performed with the Air Force band.
Q: Is there anyone on SoundBetter you know and would recommend to your clients?
A: Working on getting musicians I work with to become SoundBetter artists.
Q: Analog or digital and why?
A: Both. There is a time and place for everything and certainly a market for both digital and analog.
Q: If you were on a desert island and could take just 5 pieces of gear, what would they be?
A: French Horn, laptop, audio interface, mic & headphones.
Q: What was your career path? How long have you been doing this?
A: I have performed with orchestras since 2008 and in 2013 was trained by the U.S. Army as an audio engineer. I continued to perform and record while freelancing in Houston in 2017 and now perform with the U.S. Air Force. I continue to record both as a freelancer and professionally with the U.S. Air Force.
Q: Can you share one music production tip?
A: Have a setup for timing and tuning. Click tracks address timing and a preferred scale, mode, and intonation. These things can be fixed in post but it will add a lot of time to the project.
Q: What type of music do you usually work on?
A: Orchestral, Pop, Indie
Q: What do you bring to a song?
A: I am flexible and can work with many requests while maintaining a rich, easy-to-mix, studio-quality sound.
Q: What's your typical work process?
A: Recieve click track and/or project files. Drop tracks into Reaper, record a couple of rehearsal takes then record the first iteration of the final take.
Q: Tell us about your studio setup.
A: I have a small room in my house that I have converted into a recording booth. I have a few mics to choose from but typically reach for my Slate ML2s. I mic the horn behind the bell and record through an Audient id14 into Reaper. In Reaper, I process through Slate Digital plugins and export my audio from there.
Q: Describe the most common type of work you do for your clients.
A: Cinematic, Film & TV Horn cues, Horn lines for Pop or Rock songs
Q: What's your 'promise' to your clients?
A: I promise to be flexible and create a product for you that is easy to work with.
Q: What do you like most about your job?
A: I love creating music with others, I develop an appreciation for different ideas and gain a perspective that enriches my own performances!
Q: What questions do customers most commonly ask you? What's your answer?
A: How long will this take? When do you need it by?
Q: What's the biggest misconception about what you do?
A: That horns must be recorded live with an orchestra in a studio to get a professional result.
Q: What questions do you ask prospective clients?
A: Do you have a click track for your work? What will your ensemble ultimately be? Can you suggest tracks to listen to that sound similar to your work (so I can reference the French Horn sound desired)?
Q: What advice do you have for a customer looking to hire a provider like you?
A: Ask any and all questions! I hope to be as transparent and helpful in this process as possible!
Q: How would you describe your style?
A: Detailed and calculated.
Q: Which artist would you like to work with and why?
A: John Williams because he is a master cinematic orchestrator.
Q: What's your strongest skill?
A: Working with others and being flexible.
Q: What other musicians or music production professionals inspire you?
A: Richard Todd, James Thatcher, Allen Fogel
I was the Performer & Audio Engineer in this production
- French HornAverage price - $50 per song
- HornContact for pricing
- Post MixingContact for pricing
- Post EditingAverage price - $50 per track
- EditingAverage price - $50 per track
- Mixing EngineerContact for pricing
- Mastering EngineerContact for pricing
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