Heinrich Domnich: A Discussion of His Career, Pedagogy and Concert Works for the Horn

Abstract

This document explores the life, music, and writing of Heinrich Domnich, a professor at the Paris Conservatoire and a horn virtuoso of the late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries. Domnich lived from 1767 to 1844 and taught many of the prominent Parisian hornists of the nineteenth century including three of his successors at the Conservatoire. He published three concerti for the horn as well as a widely acclaimed method book for the horn, which details his approach to hand-horn technique and discusses its origins. It is the goal of this document to provide the first biographical work focused on Domnich and his career. Its scope also includes the production of performance editions for horn and piano of the first two solo works by Domnich, Concerto No. 1 pour le Premiere Cor and Concerto No. 2 pour le Second Cor, as well as the Symphonie Concertante for two horns. The available works exemplify the style and techniques employed by a prominent hand-horn player at the height of the instrument’s virtuosic capabilities. The document explores techniques employed in the concerti, comparing them with the methodology described in Domnich’s Méthode de Premier et de Second Cor, published in 1808. The comparative study of these works together with biographical data provides the basis for an assessment of the contributions of this highly influential individual. Examination of Domnich’s work also provides a microcosm view of the changing political and artistic climate in France during the early nineteenth century.