Hornspieler RIP

[Guest]

I have received an email from Graham Froud to say that our dear friend Donald, Hornspieler to us, passed away peacefully on 3rd January. I know that his many friends on the Forum will also wish to pass on their condolences. I did not meet Donald, but had the pleasure both of reading his contributions over many years and of exchanging emails with him offline. I know that he will be missed by many, including by his distinguished fellow professionals on the forum. His entertaining reminiscences of players and conductors gave much pleasure. I realised after one such private exchange that, to my great delight, I had once seen him on stage – at Exeter University, in early 1971, with the Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra under the great Jascha Horenstein – they played Schumann’s Rhenish Symphony and Strauss Also Sprach Zarathustra, the first piece of Strauss I’d heard live and one which made a deep impression.

[DracoM]

[ferneyhoughgeliebte]

Hornspieler's association with the Forum goes back to its very beginnings - and earlier on the BBC Messageboards, too. His memoirs - not just those of his work with orchestras, but also of his schooldays (being taught English by William Golding) - were particular treasures. The Forum will be all the poorer without him.

[antongould]

Hornspieler's association with the Forum goes back to its very beginnings - and earlier on the BBC Messageboards, too. His memoirs - not just those of his work with orchestras, but also of his schooldays (being taught English by William Golding) - were particular treasures. The Forum will be all the poorer without him.

Indeed a very great miss ......

[gradus]

Sorry to hear it. Hornspieler RIP.

[teamsaint]

A very tough end to a life that seemed to be very well lived, from all that he shared with us.

[Beef Oven!]

Sad news, end of an era. RIP HS.

[Barbirollians]

A legendary forumite and a man of many talents both as a horn player and at the BBC with a fund of endlessly entertaining reminiscences RIP .

[Tony Halstead]

I am immensely saddened by this news. 52 years ago, while still a student, I had the enormous pleasure of playing in the B.S.O horn section with Donald ('Hornspieler'), during the legendary Silvestri era. I will never forget his friendliness and encouragement, plus the musical example he set to me, his 'low horn colleague', by his pure, refined and cultured horn playing that was very much in the Dennis Brain style. Later this evening I will play the first recording we ever made together with the B.S.O and Silvestri, various Tchaikovsky works, and I'll think of Donald and say a prayer for him.
R.I.P.

[Stanfordian]

Sad news indeed! I always made a point of reading his posts. RIP

[Dave2002]

Very sad to hear of this. His stories about life, other horn players, the BBC and orchestras were very interesting, and often also very entertaining. He will be very much missed. I don't know whether I ever heard him play - possibly just, in one of the BSO concerts I attended around the late sixties or early seventies - assuming he was in the orchestra on those occasions.

Hornspieler (Donald) RIP

[Richard Barrett]

A sad loss to the forum, as well no doubt as to many others of his friends and acquaintances in the outside world. I can't say I saw eye to eye to him on very many matters, music-related or otherwise, but his reminiscences of a kind of musical life that already seems distant in history were always entertaining and often not a little poignant.

[doversoul1]

RIP.
My deepest sympathy to his family.

[MrGongGong]

Sad news RIP

[Petrushka]

This is sad news indeed. Hornspieler had a seemingly inexhaustible fund of entertaining stories of orchestral life that made wonderful reading and then he no doubt only scratched the surface. Coincidentally, I had the recently released ICA label issue of a live RFH 1955 Mahler 1 for Christmas in which Bruno Walter conducts the BBC SO - with Hornspieler in the horn section, one of his fondest memories, I believe, and an unforgettable experience for him.

I do hope he at least knew of this issue. I've not heard it yet but will play the CD tomorrow night in his memory.

RIP Hornspieler