Mary Beth Orr decided to make a 26-track album combining French horn and vocals, and honestly, it works better than you’d expect. The Grand Rapids Symphony hornist clearly spent time figuring out how to make these two elements talk to each other instead of competing for space.
Mary covers everything from “I’ll Fly Away” to Mahler’s Songs of the Wayfarer, which sounds random on paper but actually flows pretty well. Orr switches between singing and playing horn, sometimes doing both at once, and she’s got the chops for all of it.
The album could have been a mess with that many tracks, but Orr knows when to pull back and when to go big. Some pieces are just her and the horn having a quiet conversation, others bring in more layers. The variety keeps you interested instead of checking out halfway through.
Worth checking out if you want to hear familiar songs from a totally different angle. Follow Mary Beth Orr on Instagram for more updates on her musical journey.
