Premiered in 1800, Beethoven's Sonata in F major, Op. 17 for piano and horn signalled the beginning of an explosion in works for piano and horn duo in the early part of the nineteenth century. Many composers were to follow in the footsteps of the great master in exploiting the versatility and variety of the natural horn in the years that followed. Beyond Beethoven explores four works by close contemporaries, chosen partly due to the connections between the composers, Beethoven and his Op. 17 Sonata, and partly to dispel enduring modern myths about the instrument's limited options.
Performing on original period instruments (an 1810 cor solo by Lucien Joseph Raoux, and an 1815 fortepiano by Johann Peter Fritz), Anneke Scott and Steven Devine, take us on a compelling journey through this enlightening corner of the piano and horn repertoire, with works by Ferdinand Ries, Friedrich Eugen Thürner, Friedrich Starke & Hendrik Coenraad Steup.