Hamburg Concerto

In his Hamburg Concerto written for Marie Luise Neunecker, György Ligeti, inspired by the tonal possibilities of the natural horn, explores alternatives to the well-tempered tonal system. In order to open up fresh harmonies, he juxtaposes the solo horn (alternating between valve horn F-Bb and natural horn in F) with four differently tuned natural horns in the orchestra. The resulting natural harmonics lead to fascinating floating chord combinations, and with Ligeti's use of non-European rhythmic patterns provide captivating contrasts with the choralelike passages in which the tonal spectra are given special emphasis.