Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart's Horn Concerto No. 4 in E-flat major, K. 495 was completed in 1786.
The work is in 3 movements:
I. Allegro moderato
II. Romance (Andante cantabile)
III. Rondo (Allegro vivace) 6/8
The manuscript, written in red, green, blue, and black ink, was formerly considered as a jocular attempt to rattle the intended performer, Mozart's friend Joseph Leutgeb. However, recently it was suggested that the multicolored score may also be a kind of "color code".
The last movement is a "quite obvious" example of the hunt topic, "in which the intervallic construction, featuring prominent tonic and dominant triads in the main melody, was to some degree dictated by the capability of the horn, and so was more closely allied with the original 'pure' characteristics of the 'chasse' as an open-air hunting call."
This concerto is one of Mozart's two horn concerti to have ripieno horns (horns included in the orchestra besides the soloist), though, in contrast to K. 417, the solo horn in this one duplicates the first ripieno horn's part in the tutti passages.
Given its duration (no more than 20 minutes), it is quite common to find this Horn Concerto with Mozart's other three.
Discography on modern instruments:
1954: Dennis Brain (horn); Philharmonia Orchestra, Herbert Von Karajan (conductor), EMI
1964: Barry Tuckwell (horn); London Symphony Orchestra, Peter Maag (conductor), Decca
1970: Gerd Seifert (horn); Berliner Philharmoniker, Herbert von Karajan (conductor), Deutsche Grammophon
1972: Alan Civil (horn); Academy of St. Martin-in-the-Fields, Sir Neville Marriner (conductor), Philips
1975: Peter Damm (horn); Academy of St. Martin in the Fields, Sir Neville Marriner (conductor), Philips
1980: Günter Högner (horn); Wiener Philharmoniker, Karl Böhm (conductor), Deutsche Grammophon
1984: Barry Tuckwell (horn & conductor); English Chamber Orchestra, Decca
1985: Hermann Baumann (horn); St Paul Chamber Orchestra, Pinchas Zukerman (conductor), Philips
1985: Michael Thompson (horn); Philharmonia Orchestra, Christopher Warren-Green (conductor), Nimbus
1985: Francis Orval (horn); Brussels Festival Orchestra, Robert Janssens (conductor), Marcophon
1987: Dale Clevenger (horn); Franz Liszt Chamber Orchestra, János Rolla (conductor), Sony
1987: Radovan Vlatković (horn); English Chamber Orchestra, Jeffrey Tate (conductor), Warner
1988: David Jolley (horn); Orpheus Chamber Orchestra, Deutsche Grammophon
1993: Frank Lloyd (horn); Northern Sinfonia, Richard Hickox (conductor), Chandos
1996: Luc Bergé (horn); Prima la Musica, Dirk Vermeulen (conductor), Eufoda
1997: David Pyatt (horn); Academy of St. Martin in the Fields, Sir Neville Marriner (conductor), Warner
2006: Johannes Hinterholzer (horn); Mozarteum Orchestra Salzburg, Ivor Bolton (conductor), Oehms
2011: Alessio Allegrini (horn); Orchestra Mozart, Claudio Abbado (conductor), Deutsche Grammophon
Discography on period instruments:
1974: Hermann Baumann (natural horn); Concentus Musicus Wien, Nikolaus Harnoncourt (conductor), Teldec
1987: Anthony Halstead (natural horn); Hanover Band, Roy Goodman (conductor), Nimbus
1990: Timothy Brown (natural horn); Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment, Sigiswald Kuijken (conductor), Erato
1993: Ab Koster (natural horn); Tafelmusik, Bruno Weil (conductor), Sony
1994: Anthony Halstead (natural horn); Academy of Ancient Music, Christopher Hogwood (conductor), L'oiseau lyre
2007: Teunis van der Zwart (natural horn); Freiburger Barockorchester, Gottfried von der Goltz, (conductor), Harmonia Mundi
2007: Paul Van Zelm (natural horn); Combattimento Consort Amsterdam, Jan Willem De Vriend, (conductor), Etcetera
2013: Roger Montgomery (natural horn); Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment, Margaret Faultless (concert master/conductor), Signum
2015: Pip Eastop (natural horn); The Hanover Band, Anthony Halstead (conductor), Hyperion
In 1963 Flanders and Swann set the Rondo movement to words for their song "Ill Wind" from the album At the Drop of Another Hat.
