From its origins as a huntsman’s signalling device to the shiny and sophisticated instrument seen today, the French horn is one of the most distinctive and versatile voices in music, equally at home in a refined chamber music setting, or amongst other members of the brass family in a full orchestra. The horn’s hunting origins can be heard in the music of Mozart, both son and father, while its more lyrical qualities were exploited sublimely by Tchaikovsky and Brahms. Extremes of virtuosity are on display in Schumann’s Konzertstück, a real showpiece for four horns and orchestra.