Vier letzte Lieder / Four Last Songs

This arrangement expands the repertoire for horn trio and in particular provides a companion work to Brahms’s Horn Trio in E flat major, Op. 40. Sopranos will find it an inviting addition to their recital repertoire, and the inclusion of an alternative part for cello in place of horn extends the work’s availability to piano trios. The available versions of Strauss’s Four Last Songs hitherto comprise the original, for soprano and orchestra, and the reduction for soprano and piano by Max Wolff. For this new arrangement, the use of the violin and horn seemed natural, not least with respect to the soloistic nature of the principal parts in the orchestral score. This combination allows the arrangement to be faithful to the depth and complexity of the original whilst emphasising the intimacy afforded by chamber music.