Concerto for Horn and Orchestra
Lee Actor
About this work:
Concerto for Horn and Orchestra is a work of compact dimensions, consisting of three movements totaling approximately 13½ minutes in duration. The orchestra accompanying the solo French horn is of correspondingly modest size, being made up of two flutes, two oboes, two clarinets, two bassoons, timpani, and strings. I intentionally avoided using other brass instruments in the orchestra in order to allow the tone color of the French horn to stand out.
The first movement, marked Allegro moderato, is a simple A-B-A structure. It begins with a gentle rocking figure in the strings, followed quickly by the entrance of the solo horn. The dotted rhythms and melodic leaps the horn plays in this movement are somewhat reminiscent of classic hunting horn calls. The slower, lyrical middle section of the movement starts quietly, and little by little builds a harmonic sequence to a dramatic climax, followed by a brief cadenza for the solo horn. This ushers in a return to the opening material, which is subtly modified from its first appearance. A brief coda brings the movement to a quiet end.
Much of the second movement, Adagio, is a quiet conversation between the solo horn and sustained harmonies in the upper strings, punctuated by pizzicato in the lower strings. The intensity builds slowly to a declamatory passage for the solo horn and full orchestra, minus timpani. The climax falls off quickly, quiet echoes of the declamatory passage leading back to the opening statement of the movement for strings alone. The solo horn makes one final comment and the movement ends quietly.
The third and final movement, Allegro vivo, is a modified rondo, roughly of the form A-B-A-C-A. The primary initial motif is closely related to the opening of the first movement, both harmonically and rhythmically, but with a much more lively and extroverted character. The solo horn plays a lyrical counterpoint to the more rhythmically active material in the orchestra. This leads to the first contrasting section (“B”), in which the orchestra plays a rhythmic figure similar to the opening of the movement, but at half the speed. This section has a more thoughtful and pensive character, and soon transitions back to the opening material, but now played softly and with the roles of the winds and strings reversed. The second contrasting section (“C”) uses an impelling dotted rhythmic figure to create a long build-up to the climax of the movement, during which the solo horn recalls its hunting horn motif from the first movement. When the “A” section returns for the final time, the winds now play the dotted rhythm from the previous passage, while the upper strings play a whirlwind of continuous 16th notes. The solo horn detours briefly for a moment of reflection, then the music rushes headlong to a rousing conclusion.
Concerto for Horn and Orchestra was commissioned by the Silicon Valley Symphony, and written for French hornist Christophe Gillet. It was composed between January and March of 2007.
Year composed: 2007
Duration: 00:13:30
Ensemble type: Orchestra:Orchestra with Soloist(s)
Instrumentation: 2 Flute, 2 Oboe, 2 Clarinet, 2 Bassoon, ,1 Horn in F soloist(s), 1 Timpani, 1 Strings (General)