Marching Bb Horn

Exactly how to think of fingerings and notations for the marching

B-flat horn is a point of confusion for many music educators. I
believe this is a topic not covered well typically in a methods
class.
A horn player reads from F horn music only, no matter what type
of horn they play. If a person, perhaps a beginner, has a single Bflat horn really all this means is that they use B-flat horn
fingerings but they still read from music in F like every one else.
The fingerings for a single B-flat horn are exactly the same as the
thumb down fingerings on a F/B-flat double horn. The fingerings
for a single F horn are exactly the same as the thumb up
fingerings on a F/B-flat double horn. Notations and fingerings are
the same for the B-flat marching horn. Parts should be notated in
F and the fingerings are those of the B-flat side of a double horn,
as described above.
The confusion noted earlier is related to wondering the question
can a player on a single B-flat horn read F horn music or do they
need a different part? The answer is there is absolutely no
problem with B-flat horn in relation to music in F. Most beginner
methods present B-flat horn and F horn fingerings right there in
the book and give both sets in the fingering chart. From the
perspective of the students in a section where some players
have single F and others single B-flat horns they just have
different types of horns and they use somewhat different
fingerings but they read from the same music and play at the
same pitch level.
The important point to grasp is that horn players dont look at Bflat horn fingerings like those of a trumpet or baritonewe think
of them as being the B-flat side of double horn fingerings. Pitches
are still conceived of as being in F. This is important because
the music a player will perform using the Horn will predominately
be in F, using B-flat music for marching will confuse their ears,
especially in younger players.