Giovanni Punto

The patron Count Thun, whom Punto served in his youth, afforded Giovanni the opportunity of studying the horn with Hampel in Dresden. From 1768 on Punto traveled widely and held positions in Mainz, Wurzburg and Paris as a fine and established horn player. In Paris he was able to conduct and demonstrate his skills on the violin as well. It was during these years that he met Mozart who composed a Sinfonia for a few select musicians including Pugno and his horn. He later met Beethoven in Vienna who composed an horn concerto for him. Though he was a virtuoso beyond compare when it came to the horn, Pugno was also an established composer who scored eleven horn concertos, twenty four horn quartets, twenty horn trios, fifty six horn duets and an unusual book of horn studies. ~ Keith Johnson