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Unfortunately, no biographical details
can be investigated about the hornist P. Melchior. Four of his composed
works had been printed. It is the "Trois grand Duos concertants pour
premier et seconde cor" op.2, 3 duos concertant op.3 for2 horns and the volume with once again 3
duos op.4.
The music is dedicated to "Monsieur le Comte Cormiev du Medic" who was
employed by the French military music. This is described on the print as
"Capitaine commandante au troiseme Regiment de la garde Royale".
P. Melchior’s biography is illuminated a little by the third print,
assumingly his first printed work, without opus number, with the title
„Trios grand trios concertant pour trios cors en Mi ".
The trios are dedicated to Frederic Duvernoy ("par son Eléve" P.
Melchior).
So, Melchior probably studied in Paris at the Conservatoire with
Duvernoy.
Duvernoy was born in Montbeliard on 16-10-1765 and came 1788 as a
hornist to the orchestra the Comedie-Italienne. He changed 1797 to the
Parisian opera. 1801 together with other solo players, he was relieved
of normal opera service in order to be able to attend better to the solo
tasks. At this time, he was a teacher at the Parisian Conservatoire de
Musique. Duvernoy created the "Cor mixed" type of playing, by which he
propagated the almost exclusive use of the middle register of the horn.
Duvernoy was pensioned in 1816 and died on July 19th, 1838 in Paris.
Because of these information, one can accept an appearance after 1815
for all three publications of P. Melchior. The trios were printed in the
Pariser publishing house Henry Lemoine in cooperation with the Parisian
publisher David. |