Richard Strauss was born in Munich, Germany, on June 11, 1864, and died in Garmisch-Partenkirchen, Germany, on September 8, 1949. The first performance of the Horn Concerto No. 1 took place in Meiningen, Germany, on March 4, 1883, with Gustav Leinhos as soloist, and Hans von Bülow conducting the Meiningen Court Orchestra.  In addition to the solo horn, the Concerto is scored for two flutes, two oboes, two clarinets, two bassoons, two horns, two trumpets, timpani, and strings. Approximate performance time is fifteen minutes.

While still a teenager, Richard Strauss composed one of the most beloved horn concertos of the 19th century. But even at that early stage of his life and career, Richard Strauss had an intimate familiarity with the horn’s unique beauty, power, and capacity for virtuoso display. Richard’s father Franz Strauss was one of the finest horn players of his era. The Principal Horn of the Bavarian Court Orchestra, Franz Strauss was a member of that ensemble from 1847-89, playing in the world premieres of Richard Wagner’s operas Tristan und Isolde, Die Meistersinger, Das Rheingold, and Die Walküre.

Franz Strauss harbored no great admiration for Wagner as a man or composer. Once, Wagner passed through the orchestra, looked at Franz Strauss, and remarked: “Always dour, these horn players.” Franz Strauss replied: “We have every reason to be.” Nonetheless, the elder Strauss lavished all of his technical brilliance and artistry upon Wagner’s music. Wagner acknowledged: “Strauss is an unbearable, curmudgeonly fellow, but when he plays his horn one can say nothing, for it is so beautiful.” A similar sentiment was voiced by conductor Hans von Bülow, who once dubbed Franz Strauss “the (Joseph) Joachim of the horn”: “The fellow is intolerable, but when he blows his horn you can’t be angry with him.”

Richard Strauss was 18, and a student at Munich University, when he composed his First Horn Concerto. Hans von Bülow, who had taken an interest in the young composer’s music, led the Meiningen Court Orchestra in the March 4, 1883 world premiere. Gustav Leinhos, the Orchestra’s Principal Horn, was the soloist. The bold Romantic spirit, bravura display, and wealth of enticing melodies have made the Concerto a favorite among horn virtuosos and their audiences.

The Concerto is in three movements, played without pause. The first (Allegro) opens with a bold statement by the orchestra, followed by the soloist’s exuberant fanfare. The orchestra takes up the fanfare, leading to the soloist’s introduction of a lyrical theme, marked Solo con espressione. The soloist introduces the dolce principal melody of the pensive slow-tempo second movement (Andante). 

An orchestral passage heralds the soloist’s announcement of the finale’s (Rondo. Allegro) principal theme, whose lively, playful character anticipates Strauss’s Till Eulenspiegel’s Merry Pranks (1895). The theme recurs throughout, alternating with contrasting episodes, along with a hint of the Concerto’s opening fanfare. The soloist leads the animated sprint to the finish.