Oboe Discography

One of the hardest-working progressive bands to end up languishing in relative obscurity, Fruupp was begun in 1971 by guitarist Vince McCusker. After a brief musical apprenticeship in London, McCusker returned to Belfast and quickly pulled together a group of largely classically trained musicians; the lineup was unusual in that keyboardist Stephen Houston doubled on the oboe…

Grammy Award-winner Alex Klein, former principal oboist of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, performs sonatas that signify the oboe’s 20th-century reemergence as a brilliant solo instrument. One of the world’s most famous oboe players, Klein says he waited to acquire a professional lifetime’s worth of experience before putting his stamp on the six sonatas heard here.

Genesis started life as a progressive rock band, in the manner of Yes and King Crimson, before a series of membership changes brought about a transformation in their sound, into one of the most successful pop/rock bands of the 1980s and 1990s. In addition, the group has provided a launching pad for the superstardom of members Peter Gabriel and Phil Collins, and star solo careers for members Tony Banks, Michael Rutherford, and Steve Hackett…

The two oboe quintets on this disc are billed as world première recordings. They were published in 1812 but both were written considerably earlier and initially appeared as flute quintets. In those days, the reputation of the Moravian composer and violinist František Kramář (aka, in Germanised form, as Franz Krommer) vied with Haydn, particularly as a composer of string quartets, of which he wrote about eighty. He also wrote symphonies of which thirteen have survived. Having moved around central Europe quite frequently, Krommer eventually made it as a court composer in Vienna.

The Kalevi Aho discography continues to grow apace and, with this issue, the ambitious BIS ‘Complete Aho’ turns to his chamber music with oboe. It is quite obvious from the very opening of the Oboe Quintet that Aho has a special feeling for the instrument and writes for it with both originality and sympathy. It comes from 1973, when the composer was in his mid-twenties, and draws you into its world immediately. More to the point, I remained in its world for the most part, though there are admittedly a few longueurs. There is a sense of nature in its opening pages and both melodic and harmonic invention are fresh, even if ……..Like the more recent Inventions and Postlude, this music holds the listener throughout. Expert playing and very good recorded sound.

Robert Layton @ classical-music.com

Bob van Asperen (born 8 October 1947 in Amsterdam) is a Dutch harpsichordist and early keyboard instrument performer, as well as a conductor. He graduated in 1971 from the Amsterdam Conservatory, where he studied the harpsichord with Gustav Leonhardt and the pipe organ with Albert de Klerk. Since then he has been performing extensively in Europe and the rest of the world, both as a soloist and as an accompanist/conductor.

The Akademie für Alte Musik Berlin launches a series of Mozart symphonies to appear on Pentatone, starting with the composer’s “Paris” and “Haffner” symphonies. On this first album, the works are coupled with his enchanting Oboe Concerto – performed by the ensemble’s first oboeist Xenia Löffler – and the bold overture to Die Entführung aus dem Serail in Mozart’s own woodwind arrangement. Taken together, these pieces demon-strate the rich palette and expressive power of Mozart’s music in the period between 1777 and 1783, during which he finally managed to spread his wings and leave his hometown of Salzburg.