Franz Anton Hoffmeister (1754 – 1812)
For more on the biography of Franz Anton Hoffmeister, visit french-horn.net (in German).
Romance for 3 Horns and Orchestra
This short piece is preserved in the archive of the former court orchestra of Meiningen and, in all likelihood, belongs to a concerto for 3 horns.
According to the Allgemeine Musikalische Zeitung of 1811, the horn players Göpfert and Domnich were employed in Meiningen. Both were masters of their craft. Domnich is described as a player of the natural horn "... on which he can hardly be surpassed." His brother was also an excellent horn player, composer and teacher at the Paris Conservatoire. Horn compositions by Göpfert have also survived.
It is documented that Meiningen horn players performed Hoffmeister's work. In 1801 they appeared in a concert in Leipzig:
3.11.1801 Concert der Herzogl. Sächs. Meinigenschen Kammermusici Domnich, Kleimenhagen und Hildebrand im Saal des Hotel de Saxe
Trio-Concert von Hoffmeister für 3 Waldhörner
Trios für Waldhörner
Such a concerto was held in the library at Darmstadt and was destroyed by fire in 1944. A catalogue card for this work survives.
C. F. Pohl (Joseph Haydn, vol. 1) reports on a similar concerto by Hoffmeister for 3 horns, played around 1780 in Hamburg by the sons of Haydn's horn player Thaddäus Steinmüller.
The adagio played by these musicians is singled out for particular praise. The Meiningen manuscript copy says nothing about this and is completely preserved as such. In any case, it is a charming "rediscovery" and an enrichment of the horn repertoire.
Audio sample: Romance