Death of a horn legend, 89
RIPThe son of Hermann Baumann, one of the greatest horn players of the mid-20th century, has notified friends and students of his passing on December 29.
Born near Hamburg in 1934, Baumann took up the horn at 17 and, three years later, won first prize at the ARD international competition in Munich.
Avoiding the temptation of a post with a major orchestra, he pursued a solo career in concert and on record.
His celebrated recordings include the four Mozart horn concertos with Nikolaus Harnoncourt in 1973, Mozart and Strauss with Sir Simon Rattle and, in 1983, the world premiere of György Ligeti’s trio for horn, violin and piano.
His tone was immaculate.
I grew up collecting his recordings. One of the greatest, with an unsurpassed musicality (imo).
RIP.
As a horn player myself, this is very sad news and condolences must go to his family and friends. Put simply, he was one of the greats. A true legend of horn playing. Sadly, I have no personal memories of Hermann only the many recordings on Vinyl and CD I have, which always demonstrate his varied repertoire, technique and warm, powerful, tone, that bring you closer to the man. I guess it’s a good time to dig them out and play them again and remind myself of the genius he was. RIP Hermann and thanks for the years of inspiration you provided.
*Dear Norman, Your piece states that he recorded Mozart and Strauss with Simon Rattle but I can find absolutely no reference to such recordings. Do they exist? His commercial recording on Phillips of the Richard Strauss Concertos were with Kurt Masur. Please enlighten us. Thanks.
Yes Baumann mentioned this on his website but it may have been performances, not recordings.
Beautiful horn-playing. Forgive my ignorance: what is the piece?
It’s the Horn concerto br Reinhold Gliere. One of my favourites, the piece that made H.Baumann a legend.
gliere horn concerto
Just noticed at top of screen – Gliere. Sorry to bother you! J
A very great artist RIP.
I first heard a recording of him in 1971 of Rossetti concerti and it was playing beyond anything I had ever dreamed of. He was an inspiration to us all and extremely funny and gracious to be with. His recordings will live forever.
A tribute from one great horn player to another great one.
In 1982 I was at a summer music school on Vancouver Island (Courtenay, BC) where Hermann Baumann was in residence for a couple weeks, conducting a workshop and playing as soloist with the orchestra. I heard him play the Gliere Concerto, an experience that ranks at the top of my list of revelations in terms of what an instrument can do; only two experiences compare – the first times I heard Janos Starker and David Shifrin; people who just seemed head and shoulders better than even their most outstanding peers.
His Mozart and Strauss recordings are very fine, and are on my shelf near those of Dennis Brain.
No argument with this headline. Along with Barry Tuckwell, and their predecessor Dennis Brain, a truly great soloist and musician!
Worked with Hermann during my years as CEO of the St. Louis Symphony. He was a great artist and gentleman .
I echo Phil Myers comments below as Hermann was also very funny and a good story teller !
David, it was fabulous and enlightened that you brought him to St. Louis several times. We had a party for him at my house and he was a warm and engaging personality. A great loss.
Date: 2nd January 2024.
What a fabulous horn player! Hermann Baumann is up there with Aubrey and Dennis Brain, Barry Tuckwell, Alan Civil, Roland Berger and Peter Damm, to name only six.
Lux Aetna.
AFAIK, there are no commercial recordings of Baumann and Rattle.
*Please don’t forget Alan Civil in the list of horn greats.
Are we keeping a list of horn greats – list limited as I see to krauts and limeys – or are we paying tribute to a great artist?
RIP. Has there ever been a more glorious Quoniam?
Sublime: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-J36YPrjkYs
John Birge: Glad to see your name on this whimsical site…Are you still in Cincinnati? I remember being at your wedding in Mariemont years ago and have fond memories of your parents…Steve Suskin.
Grande Messe de Saint Hubert
He won the ARD Competition in Munich in 1964, not in 1954 as the headline suggests.
I saw him perform a few times in NYC during the seventies and eighties. I remember a recital at the 92nd Street Y where he played the first Strauss concerto, with piano accompaniment, as was his habit. The first few notes were a hornist’s worst nightmare – a garbled clam-fest. He stopped, looked at his horn, smiled and indicated that a transposing valve was set in the wrong direction. At least this is what appeared to be happening, since his comment to the audience was only heard in the first few rows. He flipped the switch and went on unfazed. His playing was a great as always and those were probably the only blemishes in the entire evening.
RIP dear Professor Baumann. One of the greatest ever.
What fabulous tone!
Very sad news, a legend amongst horn players and such an influence on me when I was a young horn player. Condolences to his family.
I had the privilege to work with him as piano accompanist during a masterclass, which he gave on the conservatory in Enschede, Netherlands.
I remember him as a kind, unpretentious teacher and a fabulous player on natural horn. A great memory!
One of the really great ones, along with Dennis Brain, Barry Tuckwell, Dale Clevenger, Zdenek Tylsar et (the still living) Peter Damm…
Hermann Baumann was a great player. As long as we are mentioning great horn players, Myron Bloom is one of the giants.
Bernhard Scully has a moving remembrance of him on Facebook.