Connections: The German Horn Laurence Davies & Helen Davie

• Ludwig van Beethoven (1770 - 1827): Sonata for Horn and Piano in F major, Op. 17:
• 1 Beethoven: Sonata for Horn and Piano in F major, Op. 17: I. Allegro moderato 09:03
• 2 Beethoven: Sonata for Horn and Piano in F major, Op. 17: II. Poco adagio, quasi andante 01:27
• 3 Beethoven: Sonata for Horn and Piano in F major, Op. 17: III. Rondo. Allegro moderato 05:20
• Robert Schumann (1810 - 1856): Adagio and Allegro for Horn and Piano in A flat major, Op. 70:
• 4 Schumann: Adagio and Allegro for Horn and Piano in A flat major, Op. 70: I. Adagio 03:19
• 5 Schumann: Adagio and Allegro for Horn and Piano in A flat major, Op. 70: II. Allegro 05:14
• Franz Strauss (1822 - 1905): Nocturne, Op. 7:
• 6 Strauss: Nocturne, Op. 7 06:08
• Richard Strauss (1864 - 1949): Andante for Horn and Piano in C major, AV86a:
• 7 Strauss: Andante for Horn and Piano in C major, AV86a 04:16
• Paul Hindemith (1895 - 1963): Sonata for Horn and Piano in F major:
• 8 Hindemith: Sonata for Horn and Piano in F major: Mäßig bewegt 06:12
• 9 Hindemith: Sonata for Horn and Piano in F major: II. Ruhig bewegt 04:33
• 10 Hindemith: Sonata for Horn and Piano in F major: III. Lebhaft 07:16
• Arnold Cooke (1906 - 2005): Rondo for Horn and Piano in B flat major, D52:
• 11 Cooke: Rondo for Horn and Piano in B flat major, D52 03:12
• Total Runtime 56:00

Info for Connections: The German Horn

Pianist Helen Davies is the daughter of a Bohemian mother and Anglo-German father and her family has always been acutely aware of their European heritage. Connections was conceived during the COVID-19 UK lockdown in March 2020. Much of the music on this recording was created by German composers, hence the decision to focus on that link, recording music which they felt connected them back to some of their familial roots.

Music is an international language, unaffected by boundaries and this is celebrated in this recording. The inclusion of the little Rondo by the British composer Arnold Cooke embodies this continental link: Cooke studied composition with the German composer Paul Hindemith who had a strong influence on his style and whose musical language can be clearly heard in Cooke’s short composition.

In keeping with the connections theme, Laurence Davies uses a German horn, an Alexander model 103 made in Mainz for this recording.

Laurence Davies, horn
Helen Davies, piano

Laurence Davies
has recently left the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra having joined as their Principal Horn in June 2008. He previously held the same position with the Philharmonia Orchestra for 10 years. In both of these positions and as guest principal with the L.S.O., L.P.O. and C.B.S.O he has worked with many of the world’s leading musicians in the most prestigious concert halls at home and abroad. During this time Laurence has also been invited to perform as concerto soloist most notably in Mozart’s 4th horn concerto which he played in the Dennis Brain 50th anniversary memorial concert conducted by Barry Tuckwell with the Philharmonia and for a live Mozart DVD with the RPO. He is also one of the soloists on the celebrated Deutsche Grammophon recording of Schumann’s Konzertstuck for four horns and orchestra with Christian Thielemann and the Philharmonia. Laurence has also enjoyed performing Britten’s Serenade for Tenor, Horn and Strings with several of the UK’s most renowned tenors including Philip Langridge, Ian Partridge, Ian Bostridge, Mark Padmore and Charles Daniel.

In addition to orchestral playing Laurence is an experienced chamber musician performing both with the RPO and Philharmonia’s own ensembles and with established groups such as the Nash Ensemble, London Winds, the Razumovsky Ensemble and the Britten Sinfonia. In 2006 Laurence was invited by Charles Dutoit and Chantal Juillet to become part of an international faculty of leading players from Canada, the USA and Europe establishing new summer music academies in China and South Korea. In this time the faculty has enjoyed introducing challenging orchestral and chamber music repertoire to young professionals chosen from the host country.

Laurence has also been busy on the London studio scene over the last 20 years and can be heard on a great many film and TV scores from Willow up until most recently Goodbye Christopher Robin and Avengers: Infinity War.

Laurence also has a BA in archaeology and classical studies and runs a tour company called Oldbury Tours from his home in Wiltshire.

Helen Davies
started playing piano and violin aged 7. Whilst at school, Helen was a member of the National Youth Orchestra (violinist) and attained Grade Vlll piano.

There is nothing Helen would have liked more than to be a music therapist. However life took her in a different direction, and instead she has run and transformed companies and brands globally. She has lived in 8 countries and worked in many more, specialising in strategic communications, the positioning of global brands and leading the talent agenda. In fact, the skills she believes are necessary to support both BAMT members and the organisation’s growth have been replicated throughout her career. Music has always played a key part in her life throughout her career and travels, singing in many choirs along the way, most notably the Whitehall Choir, where she also repositioned their brand.

Helen has long been aware of music’s power to inspire, to energise, to reach beyond language, and to heal. She has been a member of BAMT since her return to the UK in 2011 and was delighted to be elected as a trustee in October 2019.

Booklet for Connections: The German Horn