(1752–1795)
Joseph Reicha
The cellist Joseph Reicha, born on 12 February 1752 in Chudenice near Klatovy (West Bohemia), was trained in Prague. In 1774 he joined the court orchestra at Wallerstein as principal cellist. From around 1780 he also served as its Kapellmeister. In 1781 he took in his nephew Anton Reicha (1770–1836), later so famous, and taught him to play several instruments. He certainly also taught him composition.
Prince Kraft Ernst evidently valued his Kapellmeister highly: his salary of 750 gulden was twice as high as the highest income of the other musicians in the orchestra. Nevertheless, in 1785 Reicha left the court of Wallerstein to enter the service of the Archbishop of Cologne, Maximilian Franz, as concertmaster. A short time later the Archbishop appointed him director of concerts of the Bonn court orchestra, with a salary of 1,000 gulden. In 1790 his nephew Anton played in this orchestra as violinist and flautist, alongside the young Beethoven as violist.
In the early 1790s Reicha fell ill with gout, and he died in Bonn on 5 March 1795.
Reicha’s compositions were written almost exclusively during his eleven years at Wallerstein. They include symphonies, solo concertos and chamber music.
Parthia in B-flat for 2 Oboes, 2 Clarinets, 2 Horns and Bassoon
This Parthia by Joseph Reicha survives as a very neatly written autograph score. It is held under the shelfmark HR III 4 1/2 4°493 in the Oettingen-Wallerstein collection, which is now kept at Augsburg University Library. Reicha himself dated the score 1782.
Because the key is B-flat major, the question arises whether the horns were written in B-flat alto or B-flat basso. The autograph only says “in B”. Both versions are possible in principle, but with “B-flat alto” both horns lie very high throughout. However, Reicha demonstrably wrote just as high for the horns in other works, for example in his Concerto for 2 Horns, Op. 5.
In favour of “B-flat basso” are the easier playing and the much better blend with the bassoon’s lower register. The editor tends to prefer this option. For a performance, however, neither possibility should be ruled out on principle.
1st movement: Allegro