The work opens with a stately introduction and is then followed by a quotation of two Irish songs, Minstrel Boy, and Be Thoust My Vision, a well-known church hymn. A faster section follows using a series of alphorn calls. The opening statements feature the horn's pedal range. Poulenc's "Elegie for Horn and Piano" is quoted in a softer, muted section. The third fast section is a recapitulation of the opening and a gig theme is developed using a quotation of Kurt Atterberg's "Horn Concerto." - the composer