Details page | Music for Horns

Original Title: Largo from Harpsichord concerto no.5 in f minor, BWV1056 / Air from Orchestral suite no.3 in D major, BWV1068

Structure / Movements: 2 pieces: I Arioso from Harpsichord concero no.5: Moderato II Air from Orchestral suite no.3: Lento

Performance Notes: Out of the two works represented here, the Air on a G string, as is it most commonly referred to, is the better known one. Originally in the key of D major, Martinet’s transcription puts in into E flat major (B flat major horn pitch), thus avoiding the three sharps in the key. This is slightly odd, given that the Arioso is in the key of G major (D major horn pitch), and hence leaving the Air in the original key would have provided more cohesion between the two works. On the other hand, the Arioso originally is in A flat major, so neither of the works is the original key. What’s more, the semitone difference in both transcription in relation to the original would have made little to no difference, neither to the range nor the key signatures (2 flats against 4 sharps in the Air, and 3 flats against 2 sharps in the Arioso). There are some other inconsistencies, such as the requested “legato” accompaniment in the Arioso, when the original parts are string pizzicati. The distribution of parts on the other hand is faithful, with the first horn playing almost all of the leading voice in both pieces (except for the repeated in the Air. This makes the 3rd horn part a lot less interesting than all the others (the 2nd horn gets the counter-melodies, and the 4h horn has some interesting bass movement). Despite all of this, the arrangement is effective in concert, and mainly recommended to quartets with a more advanced lead player.

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