Horn Sonata (Beethoven)
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Ludwig van Beethoven composed his Horn Sonata in F major, Op. 17 in 1800 for the virtuoso horn player Giovanni Punto. It was premiered with Punto as the soloist, accompanied on the piano by Beethoven himself in Vienna on April 18, 1800.[1]
Beethoven was not well known outside of Vienna at the time of this composition, and after a performance of the piece in Pest, played by Punto and Beethoven, a Hungarian critic wrote, "Who is this Beethover (sic)? His name is not known to us. Of course, Punto is very well known."[2]
Instrumentation
This work was written for the natural horn and in the cor basse idiom, i.e. Beethoven incorporates rapid arpeggios in the first and third movement as well as use of the factitious low G below the second harmonic. These were all traits of cor basse playing, the genre in which Punto specialised.[3]
However, like many works of this period, to broaden the potential market for the work, an arrangement of the sonata for cello was made, probably by Beethoven, for publication. It was then published as "Sonate pour le Forte-Piano avec un Cor ou Violoncelle." Versions for violin, flute were also made.
A further arrangement for string quintet was made by oboist Carl Khym for the music publisher Simrock in 1817.[4]
Structure
It consists of three movements:
- Allegro moderato
- Poco adagio, quasi andante
- Rondo - Allegro moderato
A standard performance of this 3-movement work usually lasts 15–16 minutes.
References
- Notes
- ^ Cummings 2017
- ^ Remington, Kate. "Classical Music Highlight: "Who Is This Beethover?"". NPR News & Classical Music. National Public Radio. Retrieved 14 November 2020.
- ^ John Humphries, The Early Horn A Practical Guide (Cambridge University Press, 2000)
- ^ Anderson 2003
- Sources
- Anderson, Keith (2003). Beethoven:String Quintets, Opp. 1, 11 and 17 (CD). Naxos Records. 8.553827.
- Cummings, Robert (2017). "Beethoven:Sonata for Horn & Piano in F Major, Op. 17". Allmusic.com. Retrieved 2017-05-12.
- Further reading
- Cooper, Barry (2000). Beethoven. United States: Oxford University Press. ISBN 0191592706.
- Hill, Douglas (2001). Collected Thoughts on Teaching and Learning, Creativity, and Horn Performance. Alfred Music Publishing. ISBN 9780757906855.
- Parr-Scanlin, Denise (2005). Beethoven as Pianist: A View Through the Early Chamber Music (PDF) (D. M. A). University of Texas.
- Tatum, Bradley Alan (2010). Austro-German Classical Era Horn Works: A Study in Style and Performance Practice (PDF) (D. M. A). University of Maryland.
- Watson, Angus (2012). Beethoven's Chamber Music in Context. Woodbridge: Boydell Press. ISBN 978-1-84383-716-9.
- Wick, Heidi F. (2001). Applying Natural Horn Technique To Modern Valved Horn Performance Practice (D.M.A). Ohio State University.
External links
- Horn Sonata in F major, Op. 17: Scores at the International Music Score Library Project
- "Horn Sonata in F major, Op. 17 (Alexander Galouza, French Horn & Teresa Ksieska-Falger, Piano)". YouTube. 2012-11-14.
- Summers, Tim (2015). "Beethoven, Ludwig van: Op. 17, Horn Sonata". TimSummers.org.
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