Like Robert Schumann who often favoured the horn, Sir Michael Tippett who died on 8 January 1998 makes full use of the instrument&lsquo.s tonal possibilities in this work. He translated the Romantic genre of horn quartet into a modern tonal language: ".All movements contain characteristic calls and triad arpeggios. Sometimes the call itself is the theme, as in the fugue. Sometimes the calls are the accompaniment to a solo, such as in the nocturne.". (Tippett)

The forms of the four movements, however, are traditional. The structure of the fist movement is reminiscent of the form of a strophic song. The second movement is an allegro, the slow third a nocturne in the traditional ABA form. And fially the last movement is a capricious fugue.

Elizabeth Raum's Quartet for Horns was written for the Canadian Horn Quartet in 1998. The four parts are all of equal difficulty and importance and is a "tour de force" for the horn quartet repertoire.

The four movements are self-explanatory: 1. Fanfare, 2. Andante con moto, 3. Scherzo, 4. Echoes.

The work is about 9 minutes in length and is appropriate for advanced performers.