Whether it's calling the hunt or announcing the arrival of a hero, the French Horn instantly grabs our attention. At times bright and clear, at others warm and mellow, it's an instrument that cuts right through the orchestra whether in a symphony or a film score.
Yet this champion of instruments is not for the faint hearted. The French Horn is considered among the hardest to play, with even the most celebrated virtuosi sharing the difficulty of coaxing and shaping each note.
"You're blowing a note through three and a half metres of tubing," says Sarah Willis, French Horn player with the Berlin Philharmonic. "It points backwards, and you put your hand in the bell which also makes it difficult to make a beautiful sound. But if all these things come together, the right note comes out of the bell and it carries to the front, it's the most beautiful instrument of all."
Strauss and the Horn
Richard Strauss was a particular champion of the horn, penning two horn concertos and some of the instrument's best orchestral moment. With his father a horn player, Strauss grew up with the majestic sound of the horn, and at just 18 was moved to explore the instrument's potential in his Horn Concerto No. 1. The French horn is a key instrument in many of his orchestral tone poems, from the heroic theme of Ein Heldenleben to the bouncy village prankster theme of Till Eulenspiegel.
Tracklist
Trio for horn, violin & piano in E-flat major, Op. 40: II. Allegro - Molto Meno Allegro [06'50]
Composer
Brahms, Johannes
Performers
Frank Peter Zimmermann (violin) + Wolfgang Sawallisch (piano) + Marie Luise Neunecker (horn)
Album
Neunecker: Beethoven, Schumann, Hindemith, Kircher, Brahms, 7243 5 57542 2 6
Label
EMI Classics
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Konzertstück for 4 horns & orchestra in F major, Op. 86: II. Romanze [05'03]
Composer
Schumann, Robert
Performers
Orchestre Révolutionnaire et Romantique + Robert Montgomery (horn) + Gavin Edwards (horn) + Susan Dent (horn) + Robert Maskell (horn)
Album
Schumann: Symphonies Nos. 1 ("Spring") & 4; Konzertstück for 4 horns, 474 551-2
Label
ARCHIV
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