Friedrich Ernst Fesca (1789 - 1826)
Friedrich Ernst Fesca was born on 15 February 1789 in Magdeburg. He received his first violin lessons from his father and later from the Magdeburg concertmaster Lohse, and appeared publicly as a violinist at the age of just eleven. In 1805 he continued his training in Leipzig under August Matthäi (violin) and August Eberhard Müller (composition), and soon became leading violinist of the Gewandhaus Orchestra. In 1806 he was appointed concertmaster at the court of the Duke of Oldenburg, and from 1808 served as solo violinist at the court of King Jérôme of Westphalia in Kassel. After the end of the French occupation in 1814, Fesca travelled via Vienna to Karlsruhe, where he worked as concertmaster to the Grand Duke of Baden until his early death in 1826. Alongside numerous string quartets, symphonies and two operas, he also left behind several works for horn.
Potpourri Op. 29 for Horn, 2 Violins, Viola & Violoncello
Even before the Andante & Rondo for Horn and Orchestra, Op. 39, published in 1826, the Simrock publishing house had already issued this "Potpourri" for horn accompanied by string quartet as Opus 29. This work, too, was almost certainly intended for a member of the Schuncke family. The title "Potpourri" simply refers to its somewhat loosely connected sequence of movements (Adagio, Allegretto, Andante, Allegretto, Polonaise). For more biographical information on Fesca, see here. The work is still composed for the natural horn.