Glière: Horn Concerto, Op. 91

Introduction

Reinhold Glière's Concerto for Horn and Orchestra in B-flat major, Op. 91, was completed in 1951. It was premiered on May 10, 1951 by Russian hornist Valery Polekh in Leningrad (later renamed St. Petersburg) with the Leningrad Radio Symphony Orchestra.

Background

Polekh met Glière at the Bolshoi Theatre in 1950, during a break in a rehearsal of Glière's ballet The Bronze Horseman. During this brief encounter, Polekh suggested that Gliere write a concerto for the horn. Gliere promised he would work on a concerto in his free time. Polekh later met with Glière and demonstrated the capabilities of the horn to him; a year later, Glière finished writing the concerto.

The Horn Concerto is perhaps the best known of Glière's acclaimed works. The addition of valves in the early 19th century allowed composers a greater flexibility in their compositions, and the horn became a full range solo instrument. Many composers, valuing its large range and unique tone, incorporated it more prominently in their compositions.

Structure

Despite being composed in the 1950s, the concerto is written in a neoclassical style with strong Romantic influences; three movements comprise the concerto:

• I. Allegro
• II. Andante
• III. Moderato - Allegro vivace

The standard cadenza played with the concerto was written by Valery Polekh, the first to perform the concerto. Polekh's cadenza is very much in the style of the concerto, and its virtuosic demands far exceed the majority of the piece. Because of this, many horn players prefer to modify this standard cadenza, while still more write their own; some horn players, however, play the exact cadenza written by Polekh.