AMERICAN HORN QUARTET

• Myths & Legends / American Horn Quartet

"This program offers the virtuoso dazzle we expect from AHQ."

American Record Guide - September / October 2008

"The finest brass chamber ensemble in the world."

American Record Guide

This new recording is focused on contemporary composers writing specifically for horn quartet.

In 2002, the American Horn Quartet recorded its Take 9 release [MSR Classics, MS1089] together with the horn section of the New York Philharmonic. A featured work on this disc was Eric Ewazen's Grand Canyon Suite. After hearing this recording, the composer contacted the group and offered them another as-of-yet unperformed horn quartet, Myths and Legends. The group took up this new work enthusiastically and has performed it in many concerts since its completion in 2005.

Back in 1995, composer and hornist Kazimierz Machala approached the group with one of his earliest works, a horn quartet with the working title of Three Etudes for Horn Quartet. After one reading, the group decided that this piece should be added to its concert repertoire. Following a few a changes, the final version of the quartet was presented to the AHQ with the new title, Intuitions.

Since joining the AHQ in 1985, Kerry Turner has written many works for horn quartet which the group regularly performs. Barbara Allan and Rule Britannia! have been featured in concerts since 2002. The most recent work, Three Pieces for Four Horns, was completed in 2004, and was originally written for advanced high school or college level ensembles. Mr. Turner strove to maintain his unique compositional style while at the same time writing a piece that didn't have the same high technical demands of most of his other works. The AHQ performed the work for the first time in 2006. It has proved to be very popular with audiences and has taken its place in the regular AHQ repertoire.

The American Horn Quartet was established in 1982 by four Americans who performed in well-known European orchestras. Over the last quarter century, the group has enjoyed an ever increasing popularity in the brass chamber music world. Its individual members have won numerous prizes as soloists at international competitions in Europe and North America. In addition, the quartet has won First Prizes at the Phillip Jones International Brass Chamber Music Competition in Barcs, Hungary (1989), the NOTAMUS International Chamber Music Competition in Brussels (1991) and the Seventh Tokyo International Chamber Music Competition (1992). The ensemble's reputation for consistency, high standards and unrelenting aspirations towards the highest levels of chamber music experience has lead the group to both perform and teach extensively throughout the United States, Europe, Japan, Hong Kong, Canada, China, Australia and Africa. Their performances have been the highlight at numerous chamber music festivals and brass workshops around the world.
Unique in the field of chamber music performance, the American Horn Quartet offers an intriguing repertoire which includes not only traditional works for horn, but imaginative arrangements of works of diverse genres as well as prize winning original compositions by members of the Quartet itself. The result is a refreshing new realization of the possibilities of horn performance. The ensemble continues to record concerts for live radio and television broadcast and has produced eight compact discs which have received rave reviews. [ American Horn Quartet ] ERIC EWAZEN
Myths and Legends

KERRY TURNER
Three Movements for Four Horns
Barbara Allen
Rule Britannia!

KAZIMIERZ MACHALA
Intuitions for Horn Quartet
 



MSR Classics