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The oboe has been around as a significant solo instrument since the Renaissance and so it is not surprising that there is a very substantial repertoire of oboe pieces available. There is a massive repertoire of Baroque solos for the instrument and there has been another burst of action in the last century or so. In between, for the duration of the Classical and early Romantic periods, there were far less solo pieces written. However, the pieces that were written tend to be specially good. In this article I will draw your attention to solo oboe pieces from all over the centuries which are queer favourites of mine. Pretty well all the great Baroque composers formulated solo works of outstanding quality. Here are a lot of of my favourites. - George Fredrick Handel wrote both Sonatas and Concerti for the oboe. Amongst his a great deal of works the three Sonatas in C minor, G minor and F are all favourites of mine along with the Concerto in Bb. There is likewise a delightful little Sonata called “The Fitzwilliam Sonata” in the key of Bb. - Georg Philipp Telemann was a Baroque composer with a massive output. Much of his music was written as “Tafelmusik” (literally “Table Music”) which was composed as background music for banquets; – a kind of live Muzak. He wrote for just regarding each genre of his time. Many humans tend to feel that because he wrote so much music it will have to be second rate; – not one thing could be further from the truth. Some of his solo oboe pieces are wonderful. His Sonata in A minor is a piece I have performed numerous times. I receive pleasure from playing it and audiences take delight in listening to it. - Antonio Vivaldi (of “Four Seasons” fame) provided a significant number of pieces to the early oboe repertoire too. His Concerto in A minor is a lovely, if rather challenging piece. - Tommaso Albinoni is not the best known of the Baroque writers, though his “Adagio” is many times heard. He wrote galore real gems for solo oboe with a whole series of concerti as well as a great deal of delightful double concerti too. His concerti in D major (Op.7 No.6) and Bb major (Op.7 No.3) are the two which are in all likelihood most normally heard. - There are a good deal of other composers of the Baroque era who contributed to the rich repertoire of works for solo oboe. Search the catalogues to find them. In Classical times, galore composers seemed to focus more on the emergent clarinet and on the flute when writing solo woodwind works. However, Mozart wrote two of the greatest works in the whole of the oboe repertoire at that time, the “Concerto in C” and the “Oboe Quartet”. Both these works are reasonably demanding but are well worth the exercise to master them. There is also a Haydn Concerto in C, – the problem here is that we now know it wasn’t in truth written by Haydn. None-the-less, it is a genuinely fun piece to play. In the late Romantic era, composers begun to return to the oboe as a solo instrument with works such as “Three Romances” by Schumann and “Sonata” by Saint-Saens. These are both very fine compositions. In the Twentieth Century came a range of new compositions for solo oboe. The Concerto by Richard Strauss is a outstanding challenge to oboists. There are likewise solo works by such composers as Vaughan Williams, Gordon Jacob & Malcolm Arnold. The unaccompanied “6 Metamorphoses after Ovid” by Benjamin Britten is one of the most initial compositions in the whole of the oboe repertoire. I also love performing “Sarabande and Allegro” by French composer Gabriel Grovlez. This contemporary repertoire is growing all the time. You will find new proficiencies and extended range in some of the newer works which may be very challenging to players of any standard. Not all contemporary composers, however, are turning to these new approaches to playing, some are writing oboe pieces using conventional proficiencies and creating pieces which may be enjoyed by players and audiences alike. Copyright (c) 2010 Robert Hinchliffe Most helpful customer reviews 5 of 5 people found the following review helpful. I recently watched the Grieg Piano Concerto with 6 friends, and we were all amazed at the natural talent and sensuous delight which Gulsin Onay displayed as she tickled the Ivories. Oops – I’m out of time: DESPITE a 4:3 Screen Ratio and slightly drab colours, this is a Performance to treasure! The Price is right, and it is amazing to see the talent of this unknown Pianist and Orchestra! |
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