Carol Barnett lives in Minneapolis, Minnesota and has composed for all forms of ensembles from full orchestra to trios. The Concerto for Horn was originally written for full orchestra for Charles McDonald. The last movement is a tribute to Mr. McDonald's hobby of auto racing and the quote from the jazz tune, "Clap Hands, Here Comes Charlie" is a reminder that he started his career as a jazz clarinet and sax player, switching to the horn while in the army.
Eugene Bozza was born in Nice, France, in 1905. He passed away in 1991. Bozza studied violin, conducting and composition at The Paris Conservatory and won numerous awards including the Grand Prix de Rome for composition. In addition to his Suite for Four Horns, his compositions include an opera, two ballets, symphony works, choral works and numerous instrumental pieces for solo and small ensemble. The Suite for Four Horns is one of the true masterpieces for horn quartet. The historical background of the horn is recalled in chasses to the hunt and many of the special horn effects such as muting and stopped horn.
Lowell Shaw is one of today's most outstanding and prolific composers and arrangers of horn ensemble repertoire. Born in 1930, Mr. Shaw has performed as second horn with The Buffalo Philharmonic for 36 years. He received his Bachelors and Masters degrees in Horn from Northwestern University. His principal teachers have been Max Pottag, Philip Farkas and Arkady Wegudkin. In the 1960's he founded The Buffalo Horn Club and The Hornist's Nest publishing company with other hornists interested in playing together for fun. He composed the bulk of his pieces for these sessions, including his internationally acclaimed Fripperies - jazz style pieces for four horns. Today these and many other Lowell Shaw compositions and arrangements are standard fare for horn ensemble and other instrumental ensemble performances.
The members of The North American Horn Quartet express a personal THANK YOU to Mr. Lowell Shaw for his long-standing contributions to "fun" and excellent horn ensemble literature.