Ludwig van Beethoven, Sonata in F for horn and fortepiano, Op. 17 - Anneke Scott & Steven Devine

[@VernonStradling]

The most amazing thing about the amazing Anneke is that she uses the historically appropriate mouthpiece for each of the many horns she plays, rather than using a single, modern mouthpiece for everything. How her embouchure copes with all these variations is mystery.

[@AnnekeScott]

Thank you Vernon! I do find that in some ways this makes things easier - you're more able to connect with the instrument and get important feedback from it rather than trying to assert yourself over it!

[@vonzigle]

Imagine a LOT of practice has something to do with it!😊

[@heinstormvanleeuwen7587]

A rare piece and not often performed, probably owing to the extreme difficulties of the natural horn. Not to mention the weird sound combination with a Walther? Beautifully played. Stunning really. Hermann Baumann would be proud.

[@AnnekeScott]

I'm a huge fan of Baumann - really amazing musician - so thank you!

[@vonbismark4432]

Truly an intimate musical conversation between two world-class musicians

[@AnnekeScott]

Thanks! Glad you enjoyed this!

[@vonbismark4432]

Thank you for the enjoyment of hearing it (several times now)! Your playing is marvelous. I’m sure Beethoven would have approved.

[@AnnekeScott]

@@vonbismark4432 I hope so! Thanks!

[@MrMarcvus]

This just works! Both and the piano and the horn have such wonderful colours which are lost when modern instruments are used! Such a pleasure to listen to!

[@AnnekeScott]

Thank you! Very much glad you enjoyed!

[@Nyssa337]

Marvelous hand horn playing. I particularly like the added ornamentations during the Exposition repeat.

[@AnnekeScott]

Thanks!

[@wojciechcelka2637]

I think Beethoven would be proud of you.

[@AnnekeScott]

Thanks!!!!

[@wojciechcelka2637]

@@AnnekeScott Thank you for a brilliant performance!!!!

[@AnnekeScott]

@@wojciechcelka2637 🙂

[@marcellocamogli]

exquisite musicality, articulation, dynamics, improvisation.... very romantic interpretation

[@AnnekeScott]

Thanks Marcello!

[@volkerf.sesselmann6783]

Vielen herzlichen Dank, mittels Ihres Spiels fühle ich mich persönlich in die Beethoven Zeit hineinversetzt. Grandios.

[@AnnekeScott]

Vielen Dank!

[@four_5679]

0:00 Allegro moderato 9:10 Poco Adagio, quasi Andante 10:27 Rondo (Allegro moderato) Fantastic performance!

[@dirkschneiderheinze]

Hooray for the natural horn! A fascinating window in time

[@AnnekeScott]

Exactly! Hooray for the natural horn indeed!

[@julioblancobadiola6973]

Unbelievable. It's like a masterclass in Beethoven's sonata. I have listened to it twice in a row! Bravo to both of you!

[@AnnekeScott]

Thanks Julio!!! It's a fun piece to play, especially with a pianist like Steven!

[@christopherthr]

Incredible piece incredibly played. Will definitely go into my listening rotation. Ya’ll must have worked so hard on it! Very well done!

[@AnnekeScott]

Thanks! It's a super fun piece to perform!

[@noegodinez1777]

The ring at 2:43 !! Gives me a feeling of someone listening to music that was just debuted. Literally felt like someone who just heard great symphonies in the past!! BRAVO! 👏 👏

[@AnnekeScott]

Really happy to hear that! That ornament at 2:43, and many others, are "stolen" from the version for flute or violin published in the 1820s. We know that one of the hallmarks of Beethoven's own performances was his improvisation and spontaneity so we try to make this music sound as if it was only just dreamt up so I'm glad you feel as if you're listening to newly debuted music!

[@radudelacluj]

Lights out!!! Brava, and bravi!

[@AnnekeScott]

Thanks!!

[@Alessio216]

Wonderful performance. I've never been a fan of this work by Beethoven but you prove me i was wrong.

[@AnnekeScott]

Thank you!! That's great!

[@Mateoalcovershorts12]

The horn and fortepiano just sound wonderful together, and Steven Devine and Anneke Scott play so musically and with such joy. A huge thank you to you both!

[@AnnekeScott]

My pleasure! Glad you enjoyed our performance!

[@tomreicher8347]

Thank you for such an insightful performance of this sonata. You have shown us how Signor Punto and Herr Beethoven may well have played it at its premiere and given us new ideas for how it can be played today.

[@AnnekeScott]

Oh hello Tom!!! Hope you enjoyed seeing your old Raoux being put to such use! It's such a great instrument for this repertoire - thanks once more for trusting me with its future!

[@tomreicher8347]

@@AnnekeScott Yes, I did enjoy seeing and especially hearing the Raoux, and I knew that its future was in the best of hands. Lowell Greer, having once tried the Raoux, said that it should be played in the Brahms Trio, which I never did (using instead a Webb-Halstead Bohemian model). That might be an interesting experiment. More possibilities.

[@AnnekeScott]

@@tomreicher8347 Ohhhh! For some reason I don't feel this horn quite has the heft or darkness needed for the Brahms, it's a very nimble instrument, but that's not to say I wouldn't try!

[@dbryant4]

Wonderful. I especially enjoyed the use of the period instruments. Marvelous hand horn work, Anneke Scott.

[@AnnekeScott]

Thank you!

[@dbryant4]

@@AnnekeScott The fact that I've now listened to this twice in the last month, enjoying it even more than I did the first time, means that I have elevated your videos to the level of the Vienna Horns on my listening enjoyment scale of horn videos :)

[@AnnekeScott]

@@dbryant4 Love this! Praise indeed! The Beethoven is such a fun piece and it's especially enjoyable to play with a conversation partner such as Steven - so much for us to play with! Glad you're enjoying our work so much!

[@roycezaro1998]

It's a travesty this great cinematic video only has 281 views :( Amazing playing!

[@AnnekeScott]

Awwwwww - thanks! Hopefully many more will see/hear!

[@justinmalchow4397]

What a wonderful recording to start the day with, beautiful playing from both parties! I loved the playful ornamentation and seemingly effortless dialogue between the two, truly a gem.

[@AnnekeScott]

Thank you! These types of work are true duos with both parties having so much to say, it is really all about the dialogue and playfulness between the two instruments.

[@derekhayes8209]

Thank you both for your view of this sonata. Nice decoration on the repeat and other places, and the camera work on your right hand technique is so helpful.

[@AnnekeScott]

I'm glad - some of the ornamentation was "stolen" from early versions of this sonata for other instruments (flute, violin, cello etc) in which more ornamentation is suggested.

[@petermacdonald8631]

What a wonderful interpretation… thank you!

[@AnnekeScott]

My pleasure!

[@geoffdawson7135]

In the scores I've seen there are , at bar 104, written c2 and G2, and at bar 162 written c2 and g1. Is this old notation where written c2 is the second partial and G2 is the third? But in that case, how do we make the g1? Thanks, curious.

[@AnnekeScott]

Great question! This is a trick that Beethoven (and Punto) love to exploit! The notation is indeed OLD notation (so the C two ledger lines below the bass clef stave is our 2nd harmonic i.e. an octave below our middle C).This makes bar 104 etc 2nd harmonic C to 3rd harmonic G (or C below middle C to G below middle C). So far, so relatively straight forward. BUT bar 162 etc requires the same 2nd harmonic C (octave below middle C) DOWN a fourth to.... ?! And this is a familiar trick in this era, we see it for example in the fourth horn solo in Beethoven's 9th symphony, also in the horn and string sextet Op.81b. The answer lies in the very bendy 2nd harmonic (C below middle C). It's a very "wide" note and we can bend it down to the G below which is how we do this bit of the sonata. Hope that helps?

[@conductus]

What an absolute delight. I have always enjoyed Ms. Scott's performances because of her musicality. She is obviously a virtuoso and has complete command of the instrument. To me, what makes this performance such a treat is how Ms. Scott interjects small ornamental extras starting at the repeat of the first movement exposition. This is new to me but I'm sure this comes out of her research and understanding of the period and how soloists performed these works. It almost feels like discovering a new work. Not to be left out, Mr. Devine provides much more than being an accompanist and is an equal partner to Ms. Scott. Also, it was wonderful to see Ms. Scott's right hand work and the precision she displays. I have done a little (very little) work trying the techniques of the hand horn but it is fascinating to see a master at work (not to mention a little showmanship as well). Thank you both for this gem.

[@AnnekeScott]

Thank you!!! Very much appreciate your kind words. This is such a fun piece to play - and, as you say, the piano part (so brilliantly played by Steven) is far more than "just" an accompaniment. The conversation (and sometimes the arguments!) between the two parts really encourage dialogue and interaction.

[@andorsagi]

Awesome 😊

[@AnnekeScott]

Thanks!

[@DJKLProductions]

What I wouldn't do for a duet with Javier Bonet! He is also a world class horn player, and you probably know him or have heard of him, as I imagine good horn players know of each other. The two of you in a duet would be sensational!

[@AnnekeScott]

Yes!!! I know Javier - we've played together before. Really special chap!

[@CHICHI-vn9kd]

I have played this song for 2 years, it is very hard, especially in the last few sentences in the 3rd movement, as big movement of the mouth needed This piece is very , extremely difficult on a double valved horn already so it is unimaginable how you do this in natural horn

[@AnnekeScott]

Thank you for your enthusiastic comments! It is a challenging piece - in a way the natural horn does have some advantages in some of the arpeggiated passages as the writing plays to the strength of the instrument. It's well worth exploring Punto (for whom this piece was written) and the exercises in his "Étude ou Exercice Journalier" (you can find it on IMSLP) as these contain a lot of similar patterns which are worth practising to help facility in this sonata.

[@tomislavblazevic2742]

This is probably just as great as Punto would have sounded back in the day. Who is this Beethover, though?

[@AnnekeScott]

It's amazing how well known and regarded Punto was throughout Europe - really a superstar of his age!

[@tomislavblazevic2742]

@@AnnekeScott for good reason, it takes a superhuman effort to master this instrument ☺️

[@rafemor2025]

Muchas gracias por tan hermosa, elegante y poética interpretación al corno, el piano no está acompañando, es el otro elemento de un dúo precioso. Muy buen gusto incluso en la escenografía./Thank you very much for such a beautiful, elegant and poetic performance on the horn, the piano is not accompanying, it is the other element of a beautiful duet. Very good taste even in the scenery.

[@AnnekeScott]

Gracias! Thanks! Yes!!!! This piece is a real sonata with two instruments in dialogue (and sometimes in argument) so that aspect of duet is very important. I'm glad you enjoyed it!

[@cadavidgomez7275]

Thank you so much! This is amazing!

[@AnnekeScott]

My pleasure!

[@pascualgimeno6804]

Great!

[@AnnekeScott]

Thank you!

[@lilouday5188]

Wow Amazing! Bravo!

[@AnnekeScott]

Thank you!

[@dancostello4280]

Bravo!

[@AnnekeScott]

Thank you!

[@bennoamatti3921]

This music is SUBLIME!

[@AnnekeScott]

It's great isn't it? If you like this piece though check out the Ferdinand Ries Sonata for the same combinations - I reckon it's closer to what Beethoven might have written if he hadn't been in such a rush!

[@davidellis5377]

Wonderful. Thank you.

[@AnnekeScott]

Thanks!

[@marcotosello9575]

Wonderfull.

[@AnnekeScott]

Thanks! It's such a fun piece to play!

[@ahmadshiddiqi-rv3bg]

Gorgeous

[@AnnekeScott]

😃

[@kennethmgoins5139]

Absolutely the best performance of this sonata that I have seen; again, the intonation and right hand use are spectacular. I hope to learn natural horn someday! Thank you! KMG

[@AnnekeScott]

Thank you! It's a great piece for us to have in our repertoire - I'd warmly encourage you to try the natural horn, it really gives us great insight into the music written for us!

[@gabrielchalupa8122]

Brilliant!

[@AnnekeScott]

Thank you!

[@alexw.4434]

Only with the authentic instrument, you can slowly understand the music, the composition and what's in the composer mind...In fact, you will notice using period instruments won't happen overpower/overlay, and gives you more flexibility to show your own understanding of the piece (personality). Individual modern instruments have a wide range (can be solo or accompany) and outstanding, which is good. However, this is not the truth with period instruments, each instruments have their own spectrum. Therefore, composers back then used this to compose. Baroque era is Harmony, Classical and romantic era is emotion/conflict. I do not have any degree in Music, but if you use your heart to listen, you will have the same understanding like me. And that's why I love there are so many period instruments ensembles and orchestras in Sydney.

[@AnnekeScott]

Hello there! Really delighted to hear how you respond to this music - I agree that the original instruments help us understand so much more (and communicate a lot more as well!)

[@alexw.4434]

​@@AnnekeScott Wonderful performance tonight of Beethoven and Farrenc works! Back then, I even don't know I can hear your live performance. Keep in touch in the future Bel Canto research project and coming concert. Yida

[@AnnekeScott]

@@alexw.4434 Lovely to meet you in person last night! Glad you enjoyed the concert - and really looking forward to checking out your Bel Canto presentation next week :-)

[@MarcosAlejandro1618]

🎉❤

[@桐山透-w6m]

私は 40年位前にこんな事してました。今の業界は退化しているのでは無いかと思います。もっとあらゆる可能性を追い求めて頂きたいんですが？