Horn Concertos---performers/composers

[Joe Barron]

Interesting that this should come up just now. Friday evening I attended a lovely all-Haydn concert that included the Horn Concerto No. 2 in D with Paul Rosenberg as soloist. The Grove dictionary lists the concerto (Hob. VIId:4) as "doubtful," though Paul told me in an interview he's fairly convinced it's genuine. ("When in doubt, it's Haydn," he said, quoting a friend who he said has at least one recording of everything Haydn ever wrote. In any event, it's a charming piece. I have the Concerto No. 1 (certainly genuine) on a fine original-instrument recording with Ab Koster as soloist. The disc also includes the lovely Divertimento a tre for horn, violin and cello, which, according to the notes, is the most difficult piece ever written for the natural horn.

Ther's also a very nice recording of the Hornsignal Symphony with a bunch of other stuff by Schumann, Telemann, and Handel.

And, as CMG's official Carter loyalist, I should mention Elliott Carter's 2008 Horn Concerto. Brief piece, only 11 minutes long, with a slight, divertimento feel to it. I listened to my broadcast recording twice over the weekend, and I'm finding a lot of attractive sonorities in it, particularly the opening, when the various sections of the orchestra make brief appearances, and the soloist emerges from a massed group of brass. I also liked a section that puts the horn out in front of muted trumpets. It may take a few more hearings to appreciate the piece fully.

[dave b]

Thank you to all, I am going to follow up every lead I received here, but a special thanks to Hornteacher for listing those composers and works like that, thank you.
I emailed Eric Ruske last night and he got back to me today and answered several questions......When I think of Horn Concertos I think of Mozart, but am coming to realize that the french horn involves a lot more than Mozart's works.

[pjme]

this Discover is OOP, but contained some fine music by late romantic Belgian composers. André Van Driessche used to be hornsolo at the Radio orchestra ( now renamed as Brussels Philharmonic / Michel Tabachnik ).
Espêcially Robert Herberigs "Cyrano De Bergerac" ( symphonic poem with hornsolo) is a lovely (quite Straussian) work.
You can buy -apparently - this disc on Ebay : prices vary between ca 180 and ca 8 dollar...

Cyrano de Bergerac, for horn & orchestra
Composed by Robert Herberigs
Performed by Brussels BRTN Philharmonic Orchestra
with Andre Van Driessche
Conducted by Alexander Rahbari


Concerto for French horn & orchestra No 1
Composed by Arthur Meulemans



Concerto for French horn in F major, Op 145
Composed by Marinus de Jong



Night Poem, for French horn & orchestra
Composed by Prosper Van Eechaute



If you like the sound of massed horns try Roy Harris' 5th symphony or this recent Fuga Libera Cd with some very rare repertoire from the Brussels Conservatoire hornclass :



THe composers are  
Componist(en): Martin-Joseph Mengal :Grand octuor, for 6 horns en 2 trombones ( late 19th cent.)

Léon Dubois (early 20th century) : octet for horns

. Grand Octuor pour six cors et deux trombones: I. Maestoso 4:41
2. Grand Octuor pour six cors et deux trombones: II. Menuetto - Allegro 5:28
3. Grand Octuor pour six cors et deux trombones: III. Thème varié 5:35
4. Grand Octuor pour six cors et deux trombones: IV. Adagio 5:48
5. Grand Octuor pour six cors et deux trombones: V. Menuetto - Allegro 5:05
6. Grand Octuor pour six cors et deux trombones: VI. Finale - Allegro Moderato 4:11
7. Octuor pour huit cors chromatiques: I. Allegretto 5:12
8. Octuor pour huit cors chromatiques: II. Andante 5:18
9. Octuor pour huit cors chromatiques: III. Allegretto 9:35
 
~50:53

[pjme]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H7PA8JsbD7k

Messiaen's "Appel interstellaire " from "Des canyons aux étoiles" -

[Cato]

I know you said "besides" Dennis Brain (sic) who was the ultimate horn artist of the 20th Century.  But such a topic must mention him, just in case some do not know about him: Seraphim Records in the late 50's or early 60's had a marvelous recording called The Art of Dennis Brain, most of which is now available in this compilation:

See:

http://www.amazon.com/Icon-Dennis-Brain-Cecil-James/dp/B00166QKJC

Brain died in his 30's in 1957 in a car wreck.

See also:

http://home.netvigator.com/~ivan/dennis.htm

[Cato]

The Gliere Horn Concerto is a fun work also!

The CHANDOS Cd with Richard Watkins and Downes/BBC Philharmonic is a barn burner: it also has The Bronze Horseman Suite.

[Joe Barron]

Oh, gosh, I forgot: There's a piece for solo French horn by Milton Babbitt called, approporiately enough, Around the Horn. If you're feeling adventurous. There's a good recording of it.

[karlhenning]

Babbitt has a fine sense of humor.

Wish more modernistas did  0:)

[Archaic Torso of Apollo]

Anyone heard Magnus Lindberg's Campana in aria? I don't know if it's officially considered a concerto, but it's described as "for horn and orchestra."

[listener]

add a concerto by Othmar Schoek, available on CD
I think I have it on vinyl but can't find it -at least 20 years since last heard it.

[Drasko]

I posted some time ago in Ravel thread something that might be of tangential interest here, about horn playing in Ravel's Pavane pour une infante defunte (orchestral version has obbligato horn part).

http://www.good-music-guide.com/community/index.php/topic,9583.msg248906.html#msg248906

[MishaK]

I posted some time ago in Ravel thread something that might be of tangential interest here, about horn playing in Ravel's Pavane pour une infante defunte (orchestral version has obbligato horn part).

http://www.good-music-guide.com/community/index.php/topic,9583.msg248906.html#msg248906

That's stunning. I'll have to hunt down that Branco album. What is really superb in the Thevet excerpt is not just the horn playing as such but the perfect blend with the bassoon. The combination almost sounds like a saxophone. I'm not entirely sure I want that level of vibrato in the Pavane, though. It makes it sound almost to lounge jazzy, detracting from the profound sense of loss otherwise communicated by that piece.

[Luke]

I know you said "besides" Dennis Brain (sic) who was the ultimate horn artist of the 20th Century.  But such a topic must mention him, just in case some do not know about him: Seraphim Records in the late 50's or early 60's had a marvelous recording called The Art of Dennis Brain, most of which is now available in this compilation:

See:

http://www.amazon.com/Icon-Dennis-Brain-Cecil-James/dp/B00166QKJC

Brain died in his 30's in 1957 in a car wreck.

See also:

http://home.netvigator.com/~ivan/dennis.htm

And the Poulenc Elegy in memory of Brain (horn + piano) is really quite a piece too - the only place Poulenc uses any hint of twelve tone technique, IIRC - I may be wrong, I will have to check when I get home, and if so it's only a vestigial use.

[listener]

Tuckwell played a concerto by Don Banks here, early 1970's.  Reception was polite, but nobody wanted an encore.
My recollection is that it was either serial or deliberately  atonal, like the usual works commissioned at that time.

[listener]

William Caballero plays the John Williams horn concerto this weekend with the Pittsburgh Symphony
program note at http://www.pittsburghsymphony.org/pghsymph.nsf/0/ECE21D333C2189E38525763F004F0186

[prémont]

Launy Groendahl's Trombone Concerto which was on the radio today. I only know him as a conductor (assuming it is the same person).

It is the same person.

[Luke]

Anyone mention the Knussen concerto already? It's a truly gorgeous little piece, really atmospheric, full of great ideas, stunningly orchestrated and laid-out, on of the most attractive concerti of the last decade or two IMO. There's a horn concerto by Robin Holloway which is rather nice as well.  Both written for Tuckwell and easily available in excellent recordings by him

[listener]

More horn and orchestra pieces on BIS CD-376
Sören Hermansson,  horn with the Umeä Sinfonietta    Tjivzjel  cond.
Gordon JACOB: Concerto for Horn and Strings; Lars-Erik LARSSON: Concertino... .45/5
Mátyás SEIBER: Notturno;  Max REGER: Scherzino....
Kurt ATTERBERG: Concerto for Horn and Orchestra

[springrite]

add a concerto by Othmar Schoek, available on CD
I think I have it on vinyl but can't find it -at least 20 years since last heard it.

Thanks for mentioning this wonderful work by this vastly underrated composer!

Yes it is on CD. I have it but forgot what label.

[Luke]

I have a lot of Schoeck CDs, and i think this is on one of them.....pretty sure it is actually, and I remember it being a lovely piece, though it's the songs of Schoeck which are always the draw for me. In which case, it's on CPO, fwiw