Haydn/Hummel: Trumpet Concertos

Featuring

Thomas Klug
Alison Balsom
Die Deutsche Kammerphilharmonie Bremen
Johann Nepomuk Hummel
Joseph Haydn
Giuseppe Torelli

Jan Baptist Neruda

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Recording & Production

Alison Balsom, the trumpet soloist on this recording, used a Schilke E3L Trumpet for the performance.

Composition History

Joseph Haydn's Trumpet Concerto, his last purely orchestral work, was composed for Anton Weidinger's new chromatic trumpet and premiered in 1800.

Historical Context

The invention of the 'keyed' trumpet by Anton Weidinger in the 1790s dramatically changed trumpet music, allowing it to play melodically and chromatically in all registers.

Compositional Technique

Johann Nepomuk Hummel's Trumpet Concerto, also written for Anton Weidinger's keyed trumpet, is more expansive than Haydn's and features a wider variety of idiomatic figuration and harmonic adventure.

Historical Context

The art of 'natural' trumpet-playing declined in the mid-18th century as new symphonies and concertos relegated the instrument to punctuating fanfares.

Historical Context

Before the keyed trumpet, the 'natural' trumpet was limited by the harmonic series, and players were highly esteemed for their ability to reach high notes and play melodically.

Composition History

Giuseppe Torelli's trumpet concertos, performed in Bologna's San Petronio basilica in the late 17th century, are considered prototypes for the mature concerto form.