# Favorite Oboe Music



## TinyTim

I love the sound of the oboe, but am unfamiliar with much of the repertoire for this beautiful instrument. What are your favorite oboe pieces? Please list as few or as many as you like.

Tim

P.S. I had a friend, now deceased, from Albania, who also loved the oboe, which she charmingly pronounced 'Oh Boy'


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## Ukko

I like the oboe sound mostly as a voice in wind ensembles. Nielsen composed at least two nice things. The New York Woodwind Quintet made several entertaining records back in the day - haven't checked their availability on CD.


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## KenOC

TinyTim said:


> I love the sound of the oboe, but am unfamiliar with much of the repertoire for this beautiful instrument. What are your favorite oboe pieces? Please list as few or as many as you like.


Zelenka Zelenka Zelenka! His Trio Sonatas (sometimes called quartets) are showpieces for the oboes. Did I mention Zelenka?


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## OboeKnight

I've got this! Lol.

Concerto in D Minor- A. Marcello
Concerto in Eb- Bellini
Oboe Sonata- Saint-Saens
Concerto in C Major - Mozart (an obvious, but excellent choice)
Poulenc Oboe Sonata
Three Romances- Schumann
Sonata for Oboe and Piano- Hindemith
All of Vivaldi's Oboe Concerti
Handel's Oboe Sonatas are quite nice
Also take a listen to Gabriel's Oboe by Morricone....absolutely beautiful.
If you are feeling adventurous, there is the Martinu Oboe Concerto...very interesting.


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## Feathers

Hmm...The last oboe music I heard was Albinoni's oboe concertos, which I enjoyed. Also, the Strauss oboe concerto.


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## TinyTim

@KenOC--Zelenka's Trio Sonatas are breathtakingly beautiful. This is the first I've heard of him. Any suggestions about what artist/recording to buy if I want to get these on CD?

@Hilltrol72--Thanks for your mention of Nielsen's woodwind pieces

@OboeKnight--I appreciate your list. Some pieces I know and enjoy, but others are new to me. I look forward to finding and listening to them

@Feathers--I love the Albinoni oboe concertos, but don't know the Strauss Oboe Concerto. 

Thanks to each of you for your help in suggesting pieces for oboe.


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## KenOC

I suggest this recording for Zelenka. There's another by Holliger and friends that's probably more popular, but I like this one better. Note that it's a two disc set.

http://www.amazon.com/Zelenka-Sonat...id=1365722986&sr=1-6&keywords=zelenka+sonatas


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## TinyTim

KenOC said:


> I suggest this recording for Zelenka. There's another by Holliger and friends that's probably more popular, but I like this one better. Note that it's a two disc set.
> 
> http://www.amazon.com/Zelenka-Sonat...id=1365722986&sr=1-6&keywords=zelenka+sonatas


Thanks, Ken. I've ordered this 2-CD recording.


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## KenOC

Hope you enjoy it!


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## AmateurComposer

TinyTim said:


> I love the sound of the oboe, but am unfamiliar with much of the repertoire for this beautiful instrument. What are your favorite oboe pieces? Please list as few or as many as you like.
> 
> Tim


The so called Cimmarosa Oboe Concerto is beautiful music by Cimmarosa arranged for Oboe and string orchestra. I enjoy it very much, and I hope you will enjoy it too.


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## Bone

And cue the brass player:

I like the parts where the brass play loud enough to cover the oboe part(s).

JK - I actually like to hear an oboe when it is well - played (all too rarely these days for me).


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## joen_cph

I like the mentioned Zelenka sonatas as well. Marcello´s d-minor concerto has been recorded quite a lot and it´s nice too 




Yuri Levitin is an underrated composer, his playful & catchy oboe concerto should be better known 



, not to mention the string quartets.

Martinu´s neo-baroque Oboe Concerto: 



 (perhaps not the best recording here, the latest supraphon is the best I know)

Herman D. Koppel´s obscure, more modern yet lyrically tender one is great too.


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## AmateurComposer

Bizet symphony, second movement.


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## elgar's ghost

The sonatas by Hindemith, Saint-Saens and Poulenc are my favourites. Mozart's quartet for oboe, violin, viola and cello K.370 is a neat work, too.


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## Harmonie

joen_cph said:


> I like the mentioned Zelenka sonatas as well. Marcello´s d-minor concerto has been recorded quite a lot and it´s nice too


The second movement of that piece is gorgeous, although I love all three movements.

I'm not an oboist (although I wish to be someday - alongside being a bassoon player and saxophone player. xD), so I have to ask if that recording is played on a Baroque-styled oboe because it sounds different to me. It's beautiful (not that the modern day oboe isn't beautiful too).

Otherwise, the orchestral version of Le Tombeau de Couperin features the oboe quite prominently, especially the Menuet movement.


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## TinyTim

I am gradually listening my way through the favorite oboe pieces suggested. Most are available at my large public library system.

@Ken--I received the Zelenka 2-disc recording that you suggested. What a well-recorded CD of these lyrical, haunting, breathtaking pieces. Do you know of any oboe transcriptions for J S Bach's pieces composed primarily for other instruments, such as his keyboard works?


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## joen_cph

The eminent conductor Max Pommer did an excellent series of 3 LPs/CDs with alternative versions of selected Bach concertos, including some with Burkhard Glaetzner as an oboe soloist. 
They comprise B35/156/1056/1059 transcribed as an oboe concerto in d-minor, B1055 as an oboe concerto, B1060 as a concerto for oboe and violin, and B169/49/1053 as an oboe concerto in D-major.


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## OboeKnight

Bassoonist said:


> The second movement of that piece is gorgeous, although I love all three movements.
> 
> I'm not an oboist (although I wish to be someday - alongside being a bassoon player and saxophone player. xD), so I have to ask if that recording is played on a Baroque-styled oboe because it sounds different to me. It's beautiful (not that the modern day oboe isn't beautiful too).
> 
> Otherwise, the orchestral version of Le Tombeau de Couperin features the oboe quite prominently, especially the Menuet movement.


Yep, that's a baroque oboe alright. This is one of my favorite recordings on YouTube of Marcello.


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## KenOC

TinyTim said:


> @Ken--I received the Zelenka 2-disc recording that you suggested. What a well-recorded CD of these lyrical, haunting, breathtaking pieces. Do you know of any oboe transcriptions for J S Bach's pieces composed primarily for other instruments, such as his keyboard works?


Lots of great Bach arrangements for oboe. For instance, Bach's six Trio Sonatas (for organ) transcribed to the more common instruments, with a very predominant oboe part. A very good recording by the King's Consort on one disc:

http://www.amazon.com/Bach-Trio-Son...1-7&keywords=bach+trio+sonatas+king's+consort

Also look for oboe versions of Bach's popular harpsichord concertos, some of which may have been written originally for the oboe: BWV 1053, 1055, and 1060. I have these on the set of Bach concertos by Cafe Zimmerman on disc 3, disc 1, and disc 2 respectively. You can buy the discs separately or just get the full set:

http://www.amazon.com/Concertos-I-V...366911235&sr=1-1&keywords=bach+cafe+zimmerman

Enjoy!


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## Jaws

Vaughan Williams Oboe concerto.


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## Templeton

I am resurrecting this thread because the oboe is probably my favourite sounding instrument and I have just discovered Vaughan Williams's Oboe Concerto, thanks to this poll A Splendid British Citizen (Round One). Coincidentally this was also the last suggestion on this thread, all the way back in 2013, long before I and presumably many others had even heard of Talk Classical. Anyway, it would be good to hear of any further suggestions. I will start with one, which although not written specifically for the oboe, features it prominently within the orchestral version.






Who said that the polls have no value?


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## Taplow

Briefly mentioned in passing, but worthy of greater recognition: Richard Strauss concerto for oboe in D, Av 144.

This recording - COE: Paavo Berglund, Douglas Boyd soloist


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## Heck148

My favorite oboe disc/collection is Harold Gomberg s "Baroque Oboe" from the 60s....festuring music of Vivaldi, Handel and Telemanm...absolutely superb!! Gomberg, long time NYPO principal was a great artist, incredible sound, flawless technique and gorgeous phrasing...sadly, this disc, tmk, never made it to commercial cd.


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## Pugg

Lebrun - Oboe Concertos Volumes 1 and 2/ Bart Schneemann (oboe)/Radio Chamber Orchestra, Jan Willem de Vriend
Not to be missed.


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## Harmonie

Some recently discovered compositions I have found myself enjoying:

Four Personalities for Oboe and Piano: 3. Blue - Alyssa Morris





A new composition. I find this particular movement to be really beautiful.

Oboe Concertino: II. Polacca - Carl Maria Von Weber (?)





It is believed that this might have really not been composed by Weber, but just attributed to him. Nevertheless, I think it's a fun and cute little work of very early Romantic style. Composers of the time didn't really care to use the oboe as a solo instrument much, so it's refreshing to hear this. It sounds very "Classic era" to me, which is probably why I like it so much.


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## Josquin13

Not mentioned so far--In his chamber music, Charles Koechlin composed beautifully for woodwinds, including the Oboe and Oboe d'amore (or "oboe of love"--it has a more tranquil, serene "alto" sound to the oboe's "soprano"). I think highly of Koechlin's Sonata for Oboe and Piano, Op. 58, and his two later Sonatinas for Oboe d'amore, Flute, Clarinet, String Sextet & Harp, Op 194, nos. 1 & 2:


















Even more off the beaten path is Andre Jolivet's exotic Serenade for Oboe and Piano:


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## SixFootScowl

If you don't mind your oboes mixed with bassons and natural horns, this is a nice set that I had back in the vinyl days and now have on CD:


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## Ras

There are many Baroque Orchestral Suites and concertos for oboe - or sometimes several oboes. 
Here are some of my favorites:






*Telemann Darmstadt Overtures.
*
*Johann Friedrich Fasch (1688-1758*):


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## Brahmsian Colors

I see the Vaughan Williams Oboe Concerto has already been cited. It's a very nice piece, and my favorite for the oboe.


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## Art Rock

Bulldog ran a game about compositions starring the oboe (final here). This was the final top 5:

Our Top Five Works for Oboe:

1. Vaughan Williams - Concerto in A minor for Oboe and Strings
2. Bliss - Oboe Quintet
3. Moeran - Fantasy Quartet for Oboe and Strings
4. Strauss - Concerto in D major for Oboe and Orchestra, AV 144
5. Mozart - Oboe Quartet in F major, K 370


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## Merl

Ill be boring and say that ive always enjoyed Mozart's oboe music.


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## fluteman

OboeKnight said:


> I've got this! Lol.
> 
> Concerto in D Minor- A. Marcello
> Concerto in Eb- Bellini
> Oboe Sonata- Saint-Saens
> Concerto in C Major - Mozart (an obvious, but excellent choice)
> Poulenc Oboe Sonata
> Three Romances- Schumann
> Sonata for Oboe and Piano- Hindemith
> All of Vivaldi's Oboe Concerti
> Handel's Oboe Sonatas are quite nice
> Also take a listen to Gabriel's Oboe by Morricone....absolutely beautiful.
> If you are feeling adventurous, there is the Martinu Oboe Concerto...very interesting.


That is a great list, well done. I'll add one more -- L'horloge de flore by Jean Francaix. Here is the first recording from 1967, played on some guy's fancy audiophile turntable, and featuring the great John Delancie (long time Philadelphia Orchestra principal), with Andre Previn and the LSO, and some superb ensemble work with LSO principal clarinetist Gervase de Peyer.


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## philoctetes

The baroque was a good time for the oboe and bassoon. I am fascinated by comparing concertos by Vivaldi and Albinoni. Telemann was a wizard with excellent parts the instrument as well. That trio in the first Brandenburg evokes some kind of duckwalk in my imagination. Not unrelated, the English Horn makes a fine swan in Sibelius' Tuonela.

Finding a good oboist and hearing their recordings is a good way to go. Many like Holliger on modern oboe, while Bernardini and Pierlot are big names with period instruments. And below is a new Zelenka that I like after hearing most of the others. Those Czechs are famous for their oboe sound. And I haven't mentioned French oboe at all yet - Couperin, Boismotier, Francouer, Ramaeu...

I also like the RVW but can't forget that it was the Strauss that killed the SFS oboist...


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