Gioacchino Rossini

Cavatina

For horn in E-flat and piano - score 9 p. and horn parts

Rossini's opera L'Italiana in Algeri has as subject the flight from Algiers of the enslaved Lindoro and his beloved Isabella. Lindoro's 'Cavatina' begins with a superb horn solo, and in the course of the rest Rossini also demonstrates his expertise on the natural horn of his time. Curiously, the vocal part is also playable entirely on natural horn. According to tradition, Rossini is said to have composed the opera in just 18 days. He may have used earlier sketches for a horn composition here. This arrangement combines the vocal part with the original horn solo, providing a readily playable preliminary study for Rossini's famous virtuoso solo for horn and piano, the Prélude, Théme et Variations from his Péches de vieillesse, Book IX.

In the world of horn and brass ensemble music from the 18th and 19th centuries, original high-quality ensemble repertoire appears to be scarce. Additionally, students and advanced amateurs are rarely given the opportunity to perform important Romantic symphonic works by Bruckner, Mahler etc. and Wagner's great operas in their original versions. Orchestral part studies with only the original parts, and above all, a lot of rest are not always inspiring. For this reason, throughout his extensive career as a horn pedagogue, Herman Jeurissen wrote a considerable number of arrangements. These include shorter compositions by the great masters, allowing for an accessible introduction to their style and writing.