- The Concertos.
Richard Strauss became best known for his amazing operas, and for his Lieder for Soprano, some of which he composed for his wife, Pauline, who was a well-known singer in her day.
But Strauss also composed instrumental music for Horn, violin, and piano. Explore this fine CD, to learn more about this music.
Franz Strauss was Richard’s father. He was a horn player, and Richard likely grew up with sounds of the horn. And the French Horn is featured very prominently in most of Richard Strauss’ orchestral music.
We hear the following concertos on this CD:
Strauss, Franz:
- Horn Concerto in C minor, Op. 8, performed by Barry Tuckwell (horn), with the London Symphony Orchestra, István Kertész conducting.
Strauss, R:
- Horn Concerto No. 1 in E flat major, Op. 11, performed by Barry Tuckwell (horn), with theLondon Symphony Orchestra, István Kertész conducting.
- Burleske for Piano and orchestra in D minor, AV85, performed by Friedrich Gulda (piano), with the London Symphony Orchestra, Anthony Collins conducting.
- Violin Concerto in D minor, Op. 8, performed by Boris Belkin (violin), with the
Radio-Symphonie-Orchester Berlin, Vladimir Ashkenazy conducting.
- Oboe Concerto in D, performed by Gordon Hunt (oboe), with the Radio-Symphonie-Orchester Berlin, Vladimir Ashkenazy conducting.
- Duett-Concertino for Clarinet, Bassoon & Strings, AV147, performed by Dmitri Ashkenazy (clarinet) and Kim Walker (bassoon), with the Radio-Symphonie-Orchester Berlin, Vladimir Ashkenazy conducting
- Horn Concerto No. 2 in E flat major, AV132, played by Barry Tuckwell (horn), with the London Symphony Orchestra, István Kertész conducting
It is interesting that Strauss wrote so few concertos, considering the beauty of those recorded here. The second horn concerto of 1942, the oboe concerto of 1945, and the duet-concerto for clarinet/bassoon are amazing works from Strauss’ last years, while the first horn concerto and the violin concerto are youthful works.
Here is Richard Strauss’s Concerto No. 1 for French Horn and orchestra, performed by 17 year old Monika Němcová:
And next, here is the Richard Strauss Oboe Concerto in D major, with Albrecht Mayer, oboe, and Christian Thielemann, conducting the Berliner Philharmoniker:
Strauss certainly was a master of melody…
Tags: Richard Strauss, concertos, Oboe, violin, Horn, piano