Franz Danzi (1763 – 1826)
Franz Danzi was born on 15 June 1763 in Schwetzingen and died on 13 April 1826 in Karlsruhe. He came from a family of musicians: his father Innocenz was a cellist in the Mannheim court orchestra, where Franz too began his career as a cellist. He moved with the court to Munich, where he became deputy Kapellmeister in 1798. In 1807 he was appointed Kapellmeister in Stuttgart, and in 1812 in Karlsruhe. Danzi is best known today for his wind quintets; he was a friend of Carl Maria von Weber.
Sextet in E major (DWV 284) Op. 15 for 2 violins, viola, cello and 2 horns
The sextet was published in 1803 by the Munich publisher Max Falter as Opus 15, which places it in Danzi's Munich years. As early as 1802, Danzi had published there a sextet for oboe (or violin), 2 violas, cello and 2 horns, Op. 10.
Unlike the sextets by Beethoven or Peter von Winter (ROM 106 & 107), the horns in this E major sextet have no solo passages. For refined chamber music – ideally on original instruments, that is, with hand horns (Inventionshörner) – it is an attractive project, and one that is quite manageable for amateur natural horn players (in the best sense of the word).
Listen: 3. Larghetto – 4. Alla polacca