Dennis Brain
Few instrumentalists of the 20th century did more to establish a solo role for an instrument than Dennis Brain. By age 36, he had helped restore the four Mozart and two Strauss horn concertos to the repertory; inspired Hindemith, Britten, and others to write for his instrument; and generally set the standard for 20th century horn soloists.
Born in 1921, Brain was raised in a London horn-playing family. Both his father, Aubrey Brain, and his uncle played professionally, as did their father, Alfred Brain Sr., himself the son of a horn player. (His other brother, Leonard, was a noted oboist.) In 1936, he began studies with his father at the Royal Academy of Music, and two years later made an acclaimed London debut as a soloist in Bach's Brandenburg Concerto No. 1 with the Busch Chamber Players.
Brain soon became a frequent soloist with the Royal Air Force Central Band, with which he filled the position of principal horn during World War II. His growing reputation was cemented during a goodwill tour of America, during which he received an invitation from Leopold Stokowski to join the Philadelphia Orchestra after the war. This was just one of several invitations that Brain received, however, and he eventually took the job of principal horn with the Royal Philharmonic. Later he moved on to become principal horn of the Philharmonia Orchestra.
All the while, Brain was a sought-after horn soloist and chamber musician. During the postwar years, he made a series of now-classic recordings of concertos by Mozart, Strauss, and Hindemith, as well as of various chamber and recital works. Among the additions to the horn literature directly inspired by Brain were works by Britten, Hindemith, Malcom Arnold, and Gordon Jacob. His virtuosic command of the instrument stimulated two of Britten's greatest chamber works, the Serenade for tenor, horn & strings (1943) and the Canticle III (1953).
Brain took up conducting and founded a wind quintet that won him considerable fame. It was following a concert by this quintet at the Edinburgh Festival on September 1, 1957, that Brain was killed in a car accident on his way back to London. Benjamin Britten has written of that fateful night that "it has robbed us of an artist with the unique combination of superb technical command of his instrument, great musicianship, a lively and intelligent interest in music of all sorts, and a fine performing temperament, coupled with a charming personality."
© TiVo
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Mozart: Horn Concertos Nos. 1 - 4 & Quintet, K. 452
Dennis Brain, Philharmonia Orchestra, Herbert von Karajan
Klassik - Erschienen bei Warner Classics am 01.01.1997
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Richard Strauss Horn Concertos No.1 and No.2
Dennis Brain, Wofgang Sawallisch, Philharmonia Orchestra
Klassik - Erschienen bei In Vinyl We Trust am 28.10.2022
24-Bit 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Mozart: Horn Concertos Nos. 1 - 4 & Quintet for Piano and Winds, K. 452
Dennis Brain, Philharmonia Orchestra, Herbert von Karajan
Klassik - Erschienen bei Warner Classics am 01.01.1997
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Britten: Serenade for tenor, horn & strings; Les Illuminations; Nocturne
Peter Pears, Dennis Brain, The New Symphony Orchestra of London, Eugène Goossens
Klassik - Erschienen bei Decca Music Group Ltd. am 01.01.2006
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
MOZART: Horn Concertos Nos. 1-4 / Piano and Wind Quintet (Brain, Karajan, Gieseking) (1953, 1955)
Dennis Brain, Walter Gieseking, Philharmonia Orchestra, Herbert von Karajan, Philharmonia Wind Ensemble
Klassik - Erschienen bei Naxos am 25.01.2007
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
The Horn Player
Klassik - Erschienen bei Warner Classics am 02.06.2008
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
The Artistry of Dennis Brain
Klassik - Erschienen bei Regis Records am 01.01.2010
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Mozart: Horn Quintet in E Flat Major, K. 407 - Beethoven: Quintet in E Flat for Piano and Winds, Op. 16
Klassik - Erschienen bei Past Classics am 15.05.2011
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Mozart: Concertos pour cor (Mono Version)
Dennis Brain, Philharmonia Orchestra, Herbert von Karajan
Verschiedenes - Erschienen bei BNF Collection am 01.01.1955
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
Beethoven: Horn Sonata in F Major, Op. 17
Klassik - Erschienen bei Warner Classics am 06.01.2020
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Dennis Brain · The Essential Collection (Horn Concertos)
Klassik - Erschienen bei G.O.P. am 12.07.2019
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
The Art Of The French Horn
Klassik - Erschienen bei Everest Records am 31.03.1974
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Brahms: Piano Concerto No. 2 in B-Flat Major, Op. 83 - Horn Trio in E-Flat Major, Op. 40
Dennis Brain, Sviatoslav Richter, Chicago Symphony Orchestra (CSO)
Klassik - Erschienen bei Past Classics am 15.05.2011
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Mozart Complete Horn Concertos
Dennis Brain, Herbert von Karajan, Philharmonia Orchestra
Klassik - Erschienen bei In Vinyl We Trust am 07.10.2022
24-Bit 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart: The Four Horn Concertos (Album of 1954 (In memoriam Dennis Brain - 100th Birthday))
Dennis Brain, Philharmonia Orchestra, Herbert von Karajan
Klassik - Erschienen bei GazzaLadra am 31.05.2021
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Piano concertos - mozart & beethoven
Dennis Brain, Walter Gieseking, Hans Rosbaud
Klassik - Erschienen bei OperaPrima-Carillon am 23.04.2021
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Haydn, Mozart, Beethoven & Schumann: Works for Horn
Klassik - Erschienen bei Archipel am 01.01.2003
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Strauss & Mozart: Horn Concertos
Klassik - Erschienen bei Warner Classics am 23.04.2021
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Richard Strauss: Horn Concerto No.1 in E Flat - Horn Concerto No.2 in E Flat (Album of 1954 (In memoriam Dennis Brain - 100th Birthday))
Dennis Brain, Philharmonia Orchestra, Wolfgang Sawallisch
Klassik - Erschienen bei GazzaLadra am 31.05.2021
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Othmar Schoeck: Violin Concerto & Horn Concerto
Stefi Geyer, Dennis Brain, Volkmar Andreae
Klassik - Erschienen bei Jecklin am 01.01.1997
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo