Concerto

Paul Hindemith’s Concerto for horn and orchestra has become a classic of the solo horn literature since it was first composed for British virtuoso Dennis Brain. Brain popularized the horn in the 20th century, inspiring Hindemith and many of his contemporaries to compose substantial new works for the instrument. Cast in three tightly constructed movements, the Concerto opens with full orchestra declaiming a regal seven-note cell from which Hindemith spins a wealth of harmonic and melodic invention for the soloist. Hindemith includes a poem in the plaintive final movement, a heartfelt remembrance of his homeland, the meter and inflections of which the soloist echoes in the manner of a radiant wordless aria.