Music preview: Radek Baborák and the Czech Philharmonic

One of the Czech Republic's finest horn players will perform as soloist with the Czech Philharmonic in a program of emotive music of the 18th and 19th centuries.

Radek Baborák will perform on French horn with violinist Dalibor Karvay and the Czech Philharmonic under the baton of Ion Marin in a program of Wagner, Mozart and Brahms. While Baborák and Marin have worked together on numerous occasions, it is the first time the horn player will perform as soloist with the Romanian conductor.

The first piece on the program, the overture to Wagner's opera Rienzi, represents the early period of the German composer. The rather lengthy overture begins with a military trumpet call and concludes with a rousing march.

Mozart's French Horn Concerto No. 4 was composed in Vienna in 1786 for the composer's childhood friend, Ignaz Leutgeb, a gifted horn player. Interestingly, the French horn did not have valves at the time Mozart composed the piece, meaning the soloist would have to achieve all the desired effects through embouchure.

Brahms' Horn Trio in E flat major was composed in 1865, the year of Brahms' mother's death, a mood that is featured prominently in the music. Like Mozart, Brahms wrote this piece for natural horn, although by this time, the valved horn was available. Some critics theorize Brahms preferred the more melancholy timbre of the natural horn.

Regarding Brahms' piece, Baborák tells The Prague Post the composer often used the French horn "to express certain melancholic moods."

"It is said that the slow third movement was composed after the death of Brahms' mother and that the doleful mood is very convincing in his instrumentation. It seems therefore that Brahms was quite familiar with this instrument, and it is even possible he had been already thinking like a good visionary about the future and envisaged that all musical instruments would technically develop one day," he says.

What is most notable about this concert, besides the stellar soloist, is Czech composer Miloš Bok's arrangement of Brahms horn trio. Bok is a somewhat elusive contemporary composer best known for his original sacred music and his arrangements of classical pieces for performers such as Baborák, Jaroslav Pelikán and others.

"I was very happy to accept Bok's modification of Brahms in the program," Baborák says.

The final piece on the program, Brahms' Variations on a Theme by Haydn, consists of an opening theme on the chorale of St. Anthony, followed by nine variations and a finale. The variations feature some striking work in counterpoint, with the finale offering some of the most sumptuous music Brahms ever composed.

Baborák completed his studies under Bedřich Tylšar in 1994. He performed regularly with the Czech Philharmonic before taking a principal horn position with the Munich Philharmonic and then the Berlin Philharmonic. In addition to his work with orchestras, Baborák often plays as a soloist and in chamber ensembles throughout Europe.

Baborák and Marin have performed together many times since Baborák was engaged with the Munich Philharmonic. They later performed together when Marin conducted the Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra.

This performance is an opportunity to hear the Czech Republic's foremost horn player and also to hear an arrangement by one of the country's most respected composers.

Stephan Delbos can be reached at
sdelbos@praguepost.com