At a benefit concert which was organised by the Lewys, a work for male choir and four horns by Franz Schubert was performed. This piece is called Nachtgesang im Walde D.913. Although we do not find any mention of the Ventilhorn, as wesee it in Halévy’s, Wagner’s or Schumann’s works, but the 4th horn part is almost impossible on the natural horn, or even if someone can play it, it make no sense to use an instrument to provide the bass line, which cannot play all the notes, and some notes are almost inaudible. Beside this practical viewpoint, in other works which have the same or similar instrumentation, the composers use the bass trombone or the bassoon to take over the fourth horn role. Mendelssohn did so in the second song (Das Jägerabschied) of the Sechs Lieder für vierstimmigen Männerchor op.50. Here he uses one pair of horn in E-flat and one pair in B-flat basso and one Trombone di basso as bass instrument. Another perfect example for the phenomenon is the Nr.9 Aria from Fidelio. Beethoven uses three horns, all in E and beside them instead of the fourth horn he puts the bassoon in the quartett. (PIC from both examples). But in the Nachtgesang the composer uses only four horns; no additional or substitutional instrument. This should mean that the lowest part was also doable and audible on the instrument which was available. We can find several passages, like bars 8-10 or the measures 182-190 where the bass line definitely requires to be heard very well.
Very likely, the artistic level of the Lewys had to impress Schubert, since a year later in 1828, he wrote another piece, Auf dem Strom D.943,1 2 which could have required the valved instrument. Unfortunately, there is no source from that time whether the piece was really written for valve horn and the texture is also not as clear as in the other work by the composer. It can be played on the natural horn as well, though it is very challenging at some point, but the composer used the instrument's specialities at many places to support the text. As a third opinion says, it is also possible that Lewy played on a valved instrument, but he used the valves only for the low and difficult notes. This can be also possible, because both Lewys had to have a good hand horn technique, since they were both studying with Duvernoy, who is one of the most distinguished natural hornists ever, and at that time, in 1828, they already used the valve horn.3 Anyways, because of the lack of contemporary information we might never get to know the truth, it cannot be questioned that Schubert could have been one of the first composers who tried to use the new possibilities of the instrument, and it was very important to know Eduard Constantin and Joseph Rudolph Lewy, and know how they treat the new instrument.
These three pieces point out how important the role the two Lewys had in order to make the valve horn famous. Joseph Rudolf had a very similar impact on Richard Wagner and Robert Schumann in Dresden as well, which helped the instrument to gain a general acceptance and its regular place in the romantic and modern orchestra, not only spots and movements as in Halévy’s work.
Schubert was not the only composer who composed consciously for the valve horn. A German-Danish composer, Frederich Kuhlau (1786-1832) wrote the Concertino pour deux cors op.45. Unfortunately, there is no indication in the manuscript from 1945, nor in the first editions approximately from 1830, when the composer wrote the piece, but it seems to be very possible that he composed it in 1825, not around 1822 as IMSLP says. Actually, both dates could be possible, because Kuhlau was two times in Vienna. Firstly, for four months in 1821, secondly, a couple of years later in 1825, when he also met Ludwig van Beethoven.4 5 6 7 It could not have been impossible that he met or heard the Lewys, or at least Eduard Constantin and wrote him the piece. As the Geschichte des Concertwesens in Wien points out, the brothers usually gave concerts in Vienna both on their own and together as well. The other reason why I think that this piece was written in 1825 not in 1822 is that the Lewys started to use the valve from 1824/25 regularly.8 Why do I think that the composer was impressed by Lewy and wrote the piece for him, not for someone else in his own orchestra? If we take a look at his other horn parts, we never find any other example for such a chromatic horn part, which needs the valves, because it is more difficult than the capabilities of the most extended hand horn technique. This is also my answer why I am sure that the part is for the valve horn.
