Reverie for Horn and orchestra

Alexander Glazunov ranks among the most significant representatives of late Russian Romanticism. As a pupil of Rimsky-Korsakov and a close associate of Balakirev, he united the national Russian tradition of the "Mighty Handful" with the formal rigour of Western Europe — a balance that defines his output as a whole. The Reverie, Op. 24, composed in 1890, reflects this synthesis in concentrated form.

The piece belongs to those lyrical miniatures in which Glazunov unfolded his particular gift for tonal poetry. The horn — called upon here in its velvety middle register — carries an intimate, dreamy melody set against warm harmonies in the orchestra. The musical language possesses a late-Romantic richness without ever tipping into heaviness: transparency and warmth are held in equal measure. Characteristic of Glazunov is the elegant melodic line, which recalls Tchaikovsky's gift for song without seeking his dramatic intensity.

The orchestral version represents Glazunov's own expansion of the original work for horn and piano. The original scoring will have found its place in the concert hall as well; yet the orchestral version lends the piece a depth of sound and richness of colour that elevates its intimate subject matter to the platform of the grand hall.