Horn Concerto in A minor Kurt Atterberg

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NDR Radiophilharmonie conducted by Ari Rasilainen. Johannes-Theodor Wiemes as the horn soloist. • I - Allegro patetico: 0:00 • II - Adagio: 7:50 • III - Rondo. Allegro molto: 15:48 • Atterberg's horn concerto was composed between February 24 and September 14 of 1926, originally conceived as a suite, it finally materialized as a concerto. It was premiered in March 20 of 1927, performed with the Stockholm Philharmonic Orchestra conducted by Adolf Wiklund. The solo part was written for Axel Malm, who was the solo horn player in the orchestra for some 40 years, and who taught horn playing at the Music Highschool for some 50 years. • Atterberg thought that the Concert Society in Stockholm preferred foreign novelties to Swedish ones, so they decided that Malm should present the new concerto as written by a Russian pupil. But already in the middle of the first movement, some in the orchestra started to giggle, saying that it wasn't Russian, it was Atterberg! As some critics had written that the composer had no personal style, he was pleased to be recognized. The work is scored for strings, piano and percussion, an unusual combination for Atterberg. • The first movement is structured in sonata form. It opens with an expansive main theme exposed by the horn, full of grandeur and solemnity. A lyrical second theme of nordic flavour is calmly presented by the strings, then taken by the soloist. The development begins with a dramatic variation of the main theme, followed by a meditative passage, soon contrasted by another dramatic section. An inverted recapitulation takes place, with the lyrical second theme before the imposing main one. • The second movement is structured in ternary form. It begins with a deeply lyrical main theme presented by the horn, full of nordic sonorities, sustained by chords from the strings and the piano. The middle section begins with the theme shared between strings and horn, with jazz-like interventions of the piano. The horn then recapitulates the main theme in a varied way. The music rises in an opulent climax, followed by a new restatement of the theme on the horn. A peaceful coda ends the movement. • The third movement is structured as a rondo (A-B-C-A'-B'-C'-Coda). It opens with a playful and mischievous main theme presented by the horn, supported by strings and a rich percussion. The secondary one, derived from the main one, is more majestic. A jazzistic third theme is presented, being also a variation of the main one. After a low-key transition, the main theme is then recapitulated in a varied way. The solemn main theme from the beginning of the work suddenly appears, serving as a decided coda. • Picture: Portrait of August Strindberg (1905) by the Swedish painter Richard Bergh. • Musical analysis written by myself. Sources: https://bit.ly/3HYBZCy

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