Trumpet Concerto in E‑Flat Major

A popular concerto instrument in Baroque times, especially in Italy, the trumpet had fared less well in the later 18th century, partly, perhaps, because of technical limitations. But things were changing. In 1796 Haydn obliged a request from his friend the trumpeter Anton Weidinger and composed a concerto designed to show off Weidinger’s improvements to the instrument; seven years later Hummel followed suit, taking full advantage of further refinements that increased the number of notes available to the player. It premiered on New Year’s Day 1804, a double celebration for its composer, who at the same time stepped into Haydn’s shoes as director of music to the Esterházy Court. Hummel had lodged with Mozart as an eight-year-old pupil, and the opening of the first movement sounds as if he’d recently been listening to his teacher’s Haffner Symphony. Marked “Allegro con spirito” (fast and spirited), it balances military vim and vigour with an elegant lyricism that allows the soloist to trespass into keys only possible thanks to Weidinger’s innovations. The middle movement celebrates the trumpet’s ability to sustain a soulful singing line which is stilled by a pause quivering with anticipation. What follows is a pithy trumpet summons to attention that sets the show-stealing finale on its way, filling the proceedings with a sparkle worthy of Rossini, a tongue-in-cheek pathos and a bravado to give even Haydn pause for admiring thought.