Peter Damm (born 27 July 1937,

Meiningen Meiningen () is a town in the southern part of the state of Thuringia, Germany. It is located in the region of Franconia and has a population of around 26,000 (2024).

, Thüringen) is a German

horn Horn may refer to: Common uses * Horn (acoustic), a tapered sound guide ** Horn antenna ** Horn loudspeaker ** Vehicle horn ** Train horn *Horn (anatomy), a pointed, bony projection on the head of various animals * Horn (instrument), a family ...

player. He began his musical education aged eleven, on the violin, and started playing the horn in 1951 and graduated from the Franz Liszt Academy in 1957. In 1959 he was appointed as principal horn of the

Leipzig Gewandhaus Orchestra The Leipzig Gewandhaus Orchestra (Gewandhausorchester; also previously known in German as the Gewandhausorchester Leipzig) is a German symphony orchestra based in Leipzig, Germany. The orchestra is named after the concert hall in which it is bas ...

, and from 1969 to 2002 he was principal horn at the

Dresden Staatskapelle The Sächsische Staatskapelle Dresden (), or Saxony, Saxon State Orchestra Dresden, is one of the oldest orchestras in the world, created by order of Maurice, Elector of Saxony in 1548. Under communist East Germany and until 1992 it was called St ...

. On his retiring, the orchestra made him an honorary member. He is professor of horn at the

Carl Maria von Weber Carl Maria Friedrich Ernst von Weber (5 June 1826) was a German composer, conductor, virtuoso pianist, guitarist, and Music criticism, critic in the early Romantic music, Romantic period. Best known for List of operas by Carl Maria von Weber, h ...

music conservatoire (Hochschule für Musik) in

Dresden Dresden (; ; Upper Saxon German, Upper Saxon: ''Dräsdn''; , ) is the capital city of the States of Germany, German state of Saxony and its second most populous city after Leipzig. It is the List of cities in Germany by population, 12th most p ...

. He was awarded the title "Kammermusiker" in 1969, and "Kammervirtuose" in 1971. His professional career saw him touring extensively in Europe, as well as Japan and North America. He has also given many masterclasses and seminars. Peter Damm performed the Richard Strauss Horn Concerto Op.11 over 150 times. Since 1986, Peter Damm has been president of the International Competition for Wind Instruments in Markneukirchen. He is an honorary member of the International Horn Society. Damm has been described as "legendary"British Horn Society
– he is known for both his exceptional abilities as a player, and for his editions of many of the standard works in the horn repertoire, published by Breitkopf. In particular, his recordings of Strauss with the Staatskapelle Dresden are still in demand.

References

Official website

at the International Horn Society 1937 births Living people German classical horn players Artists from Meiningen Academic staff of the Hochschule für Musik Carl Maria von Weber Recipients of the Art Prize of the German Democratic Republic Players of the Leipzig Gewandhaus Orchestra Players of the Staatskapelle Dresden Prize-winners of the ARD International Music Competition {{Brass-musician-stub