Music For Horns

Anybody not familiar with this work from Italian composer Gioacchino Rossini's (1792-1868) opera William Tell, an opera based on Friedrich Schiller's play about the struggles of the Swiss people against Austrian rule, should grab a recording and enjoy one of the most popular and well-known orchestral overtures. The piece is in four sections, with a slow introduction (originally for solo cello), followed by a lively part including fast scale and chromatic passages. The third section features an extensive English solo with virtuoso piccolo flute interludes, and the finale, finally, is the famous bit that doesn't need any description.

This arrangement is the second (apart from a very early work a decade earlier) of my transcriptions of orchestral music for French horn ensembles, and it is, in one word, insane. It is also pretty much unplayable (in concert). While the introduction works quite well, the second part requires incredible technical skill, and an excellent mastery of at least three octaves. In the following slow section, the first and third horn alternate on the piccolo flute part, with rapid major leaps. The finale though is the killer: the high horns reside somewhere in the stratosphere, and rarely are given the chance to catch a breath.

From an arranging point of view, there are a few interesting points to note. The various orchestral lines are often alternating between the players, which means that there is no clear distinction between high and low players in a number of places. While overall there always is a clear hierarchy (1st, 3rd, 2nd, 4th), the main melodic line may be featured in any of the parts at any time, which makes it interesting to follow. As always with my arrangements, few concessions have been made in regards to technical skills demanded. What shows that this is an early arrangement, is that the number of players needed has blatantly been misjudged, even more than the impossibility of the range or rapid fingerings skills required.

There is a recording available, as well as the score and parts, and word is that one day this arrangement will be re-worked into something a bit more playable. At that point it may be worth looking into using a different key as well, as the number of sharps in this arrangement is at times overwhelming. If playing at the top end of what is possible on the horn is your thing, this is the piece to check out. Otherwise listen to the recording and guess how many takes were recorded...