Horn player, born in London, UK. He studied under his father Aubrey Brain (18931955) at the Royal Academy of Music, also becoming an organist, then worked with the Royal Philharmonic and Philharmonia Orchestras as chief horn player. Amongst the composers who wrote works especially for him were Britten, Hindemith, and Malcolm Arnold.
Dennis Brain (1921 – 1957) was a very distinguished British horn player and was largely responsible for popularizing the horn as a solo classical instrument with the public.
A Family Tradition
Dennis Brain was born in London into a family already well known for producing fine horn players. (1885-10-24 - 1966-03-29), had a successful career playing horn in the United States with the New York Symphony Society and later as a soloist in Hollywood.
His father, Aubrey Brain (1893-07-12 - 1955-09-21), held the principal horn position in the BBC Symphony Orchestra and was also a teacher. Aubrey Brain produced the first Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart horn concerto recording in 1927.
His mother, Marion Brain, was a composer and wrote cadenzas to the first and third Mozart horn concerti which her husband played.
His brother, Leonard Brain (1915 - 1975) was an oboist and performed with Dennis in a wind quintet that Dennis formed.
Brain married Yvonne Brain and had two children: Anthony Paul Brain and Sally Brain.
Musical Career
Early Years
At an early age, Brain was allowed to blow a few notes on his father's horn every Saturday morning. Aubrey Brain held the belief that students should not study the horn seriously until the latter teenage years, when the teeth and embouchure became fully developed. It was not until the age of 15 that Dennis was to transfer from St Paul's School to the Royal Academy of Music to study horn, under his father's tutelage.
Brain debuted in performance on October 6 1938, playing second horn under his father with the Busch Chamber Players at the Queen's Hall.
At the age of 21, Brain was appointed to the first horn position in the National Symphony Orchestra.
In 1943, Brain's solo career truly began when Benjamin Britten wrote his Serenade for Tenor and Horn for Peter Pears and Brain.
Later years
By 1945, Brain was the most sought-after horn player in England. Brain filled the position as principal horn in both.
Expanding his interest in the neglected area of chamber music, Brain formed a wind quintet with his brother in 1946.
In 1951, Brain switched to the German-style Alexander horn.
Under the direction of Herbert von Karajan, Brain performed the organ in a recording of the Easter hymn from Pietro Mascagni's Cavalleria rusticana in July, 1954.
Brain made a radio program entitled The Early Horn in 1955.
Showing off his humorous style, Brain performed a Leopold Mozart horn concerto on rubber hosepipes at a Gerard Hoffnung music festival in 1956.
A Horn Literature Renaissance
New Works
Composer-performer collaborations have often been successful vehicles in advancing music. 2), Paul Hindemith (Concerto for Horn and Orchestra), York Bowen (Concerto for Horn, Strings and Timpani), Peter Racine Fricker (Horn Sonata), Gordon Jacob (Concerto for Horn and String Orchestra), Mátyás Seiber (Notturno for Horn and Strings), Humphrey Searle (Aubade for Horn and Strings), Ernest Tomlinson (Rhapsody and Rondo for Horn and Orchestra, Romance and Rondo for Horn and Orchestra), Lennox Berkeley (Trio for Horn, Violin and Piano) and Elisabeth Lutyens.
Francis Poulenc wrote Elegy for Horn and Piano to commemorate Brain's death.
Literary Resurrections
Brain collaborated with Karajan to produce recordings of the four Mozart horn concerti, works now considered to be the basis of the solo horn repertory.
Brain also popularized the two Richard Strauss horn concerti.
In 1951, Brain became the first person to perform Joseph Haydn's Horn Concerto No.
A Premature End
On September 1, 1957, Brain was driving home to London after performing at the Edinburgh Festival with his wind quintet when he was killed in a car accident near Barnet in his Triumph sports car.
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