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THE CD CATALOGUE
These CDs are full price in UK shops, around £14-50 (Britten £16),
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Britten: Six Metamorphoses after Ovid, Op 49
Anatomy of a Masterpiece
George Caird (oboe) Joy Boughton (oboe) Nicholas Daniel (oboe)
A new shape for a CD; it's in a DVD case to house George Caird's 20,000 words of wide-ranging
background to the work, containing everything from its literary and visual influences to where to take a breath.
Then there are three full performances; by George Caird,
Joy Boughton (for whom Britten wrote the work) recorded in 1952;
and Nicholas Daniel. Those clips were the opening of Pan; here are the
endings of Arethusa from George, Joy
and Nick.
There are also 23 tracks of Britten's sketches, analysed and played by George Caird. Here, for example,
is an early version of part of Bacchus.
If you are interested in exploring this elusive and subtle work, this CD is definitely for you!
[Not available for an Oboe Box]
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oboe+
berio and beyond
Christopher Redgate (oboe, oboe d'amore) and friends
Christopher Redgate has already tackled 19th Century virtuosity (see Pasculli, below); here he is in music of our own time, as in Luciano Berio's Sequenza VII.
Sometimes with percussion as in Sam Hayden's Recoil, or with interactive computer as in Michael Young's Argrophylax, Christopher pushes himself and his instrument to their limits.
This is the virtuosity of the high-wire act - not simply to impress, but to produce music that is exuberant (as in his impro-
visation '...sting of the bee...'), moving (as in Roger Redgate's Ausgangspunkte) and challenging (as in Michael Finnissy's Pavasiya).
[CD number 15]
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Melodic Lines
works for oboe, bassoon and piano
Jeremy Polmear (oboe) Philip Gibbon (bassoon) Diana Ambache (piano)
Melodic lines abound in these trios - in the operatic melodies of Lalliet, or the opening of Poulenc's celebrated Trio.
Ceremony and melancholy is mixed in Geoffrey Bush's superb Trio, and Madeleine Dring contributes her characteristic wit and bounce.
Receiving their première recordings are Richard Stoker's french-influenced Miniatures, and the enigmatic melody of jazz/rock saxophonist Barbara Thompson's Green.
Overall, this CD shows what beautiful tunes and textures are to be had from oboe, bassoon and piano.
[CD number 16]
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From Leipzig to London
Duo Sonatas from the 18th and 20th Centuries
Althea Ifeka (oboe, oboe d'amore, cor anglais) Katharine May (harpsichord)
Bach, Bach and Bach - not only his 'Little G minor' oboe sonata, but highly effective arrangements of Gamba sonatas for oboe d'amore and cor anglais.
The road from Leipzig to London was paved by Evelyn Barbirolli and Valda Aveling, who inspired a range of works from British composers, from the ever-mellifluous Gordon Jacob to the grittier Elizabeth Maconchy.
This debut disc from Althea Ifeka and Katharine May also includes music from Stephen Dodgson and Michael Head's Siciliana.
[CD number 13]
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THE SHEBA SOUND
Two oboes, bassoon and harpsichord crossing musical boundaries
Double CD (single CD price)
Bach with a rhythm section, a jazzy piece by Daryl Runswick, a Viennese Polka, a creative version of the Beatles' Here Comes the Sun - variety like this makes the first of these two CDs great for car journeys or downloading into your iPod.
The second combines contemporary works such as David Matthews' Berceuse and Jean-Michel Damase's Scherzo with Baroque pieces by François Couperin and (of course) the Arrival of the Queen of Sheba.
A highly enjoyable tribute to a group that crossed musical boundaries for more than twenty years.
[CD number 14]
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Janet Craxton
music for oboe and strings
The memory of Janet Craxton (1929-81) remains vivid with many people, and this CD gives ample opportunity to see why. Hear her float a phrase under shifting strings in Francis Routh's Quartet, or the 12-note melody of Nicola LeFanu's dramatic Variations.
Scherzos abound in this CD, as in the excitement of Richard Stoker's Polemics, and the sophistication of Elizabeth Maconchy's Quartet.
The magic of Janet Craxton's playing is evident throughout these fine BBC recordings, as in her entry in Lennox Berkeley's Quartet, and the emotional journey she takes us on with Elisabeth Lutyens' powerful quartet Driving out the Death.
[CD number 11]
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The Oboe 1903-53
Double CD of historic oboe recordings (single CD price)
The earliest recordings here plunge us into a different world, as in this 1908 recording by Caesar Addimando. Later in the century, here is Sidney Sutcliffe elegantly negotiating a Beethoven variation in 1951.
There are some fascinating comparisons, as with Goossens' mentor Henri de Busscher demonstrating the Brahms violin concerto solo in a 1940s educational disc, and Goossens' own 1936 version.
There are many surprises: gorgeous phrasing from Bruno Labate in J C Bach's Sinfonia; and Louis Bleuzet sounding very up-to-date in this Sonata by Mihalovici.
[CD number 12]
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An English Renaissance
music for oboe and strings inspired by Léon Goossens
George Caird (oboe) and friends
These pieces for oboe and strings - all written for Goossens or inspired by him - show a wide variety of moods, from rumbustuous energy in Arthur Bliss to English understatement in the Fantasy of E J Moeran.
The opening of Elizabeth Maconchy's Quintet shows a striking intensity, and so does this section from the first movement of this re-discovered Quintet of Dorothy Gow.
The Phantasy Quartet of Benjamin Britten completes the programme, played with virtuosity and flair by George Caird and his string friends.
[CD number 9]
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Ready, Steady, Blow!
Musicians of Trinity College of Music
Here is a CD to inspire all oboe beginners, with a wealth of good, simple music - for example this ebulliant piece, attributed to Henry VIII, or this soulful Air by Purcell.
The lively Corumbá can be played after just a few lessons,
and there are many jazzy pieces, for example the well-known I Got Rhythm.
There are some inspiring performances, as in this beautiful pastoral music by Michael Head.
Each piece is playable without the oboe part, and there are 60 tracks in all.
[CD number 10]
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the oboe in MOZART chamber music
Jeremy Polmear (oboe & cor anglais)
with the Ambache Chamber Ensemble
Joy is the keyword for this CD; you can hear it in the opening bars of the Oboe Quartet, and in the interplay between flute, oboe and piano in this segment from the Quintet, K617.
But there is also serenity, as in this version for cor anglais of the Adagio K580a, and in the slow movement of the Sonata K376 (originally for violin), in which the oboe and piano lines intertwine.
The CD ends with the celebrated Quintet for Piano and Winds K452, where all five instruments celebrate together in the way that only Mozart can; here is the group cadenza in the last movement.
[CD number 7]
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Though Lovers be Lost
Emily Pailthorpe (oboe) Julian Milford (piano)
This powerful CD expresses the uncertainty - and creative energy - of the period dominated by the two World Wars. Here is the ominous theme of Benjamin Britten's Temporal Variations of 1936, and the dramatic Scherzo from Henri Dutilleux' Sonata.
Nostalgia is present, too, as in the oboe entry in Gerard Finzi's Interlude (1936), and Ravel's tribute to dead soldier friends in his Tombeau de Couperin (1917).
The same period produced Eugène Goossens' Concerto; and here as elsewhere, Emily Pailthorpe demonstrates the expressive playing that led the Gillet Competition jury
to dub her "the Jacqueline du Pré of the oboe." [CD number 8]
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Rare GOOSSENS
Léon Goossens
These are all recordings not available elsewhere, and they show Goossens in rare form. Hear, for example, his ability to float a phrase in Pierné's Aubade.
The performances range from a 1925 pre-electric recording of Charles Colin's endearing Concertino, to a 1947 reworking of Scarlatti themes.
There is an important reissue of the 1927 Bax Quintet (written for Goossens), and a number of miniatures such as the Londonderry Air, at which he excelled.
[CD number 5]
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PASCULLI
Christopher Redgate (oboe) Stephen Robbings (piano)
Pasculli has been described as the 'Paganini of the Oboe'. Just listen to Christopher Redgate's amazing high-wire act in Pasculli's Study Le Api (The Bees).
This is not just idle virtuosity; listen to how Pasculli uses it to develop a theme in the Sicilian Vespers.
And what themes! Here is one of melting simplicity from the
Les Hugenots Fantasia.
Pasculli's writing is leavened with a spirit of geniality, as in this episode in Poliuto, evoking the Italian countryside. But virtuosity is the keynote, with seemingly impossible feats of derring-do, as in this variation
from
La Favorita. [CD number 6]
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NEW GROUND
Seven world première recordings - Paul Goodey
This cover shows an interaction between a man and a mechanism, amply demonstrated in Paul Goodey and Michael Oliva's Xas-Orion (with computer) and Edwin Roxburgh's multi-tracked At the Still Point of the Turning World... (this section features the oboe's keywork).
However, David Sutton-Anderson's New Ground is derived from a Ground Bass by Henry Purcell, and Michael Oliva's Into the Light is neo-Romantic.
Specially written for this CD is Cecilia MacDowall's dramatic Fox Woman, spoken and sung by Linda Hirst. [CD number 3]
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The art of HAN de VRIES
Concertos spanning two decades of an international career
Han de Vries is the leading exponent of the Dutch School of oboe playing. Listen to his light, fluent style in the first movement of Mozart's oboe concerto.
Han de Vries is equally at home in the chamber music situation of the Bach oboe and violin concerto, or riding the orchestra in the Paganini-like Kalliwoda Concertino.
He plays Baroque oboe in the Telemann C minor concerto, and modern oboe without vibrato in the 1969 concerto by Louis Andreissen, that sounds quite normal - except for the voice on the radio... [CD number 4]
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BAROQUE SPIRIT
- La Fontaine
The vivacity and virtuosity of this young Japanese group ensures that they win the audience prize whever they go. Baroque music doesn't get more spirited than this. Listen, for example, to this Telemann E minor Presto. There's a lot of Telemann on this CD, and deservedly so. Here is the gorgeous, floating opening of his A minor Triosonata
Lesser-known composers provide some delightful surprises too, such as this sinuous oboe duet from the Quantz G minor Triosonata, or the spirited final allegro from the G major Triosonata by the Pla brothers. [CD number 1]
[Note: for copyright reasons, in Japan order this CD from www.meister-music.com.]
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Robert & Clara SCHUMANN
The Polmear Ambache Duo
These are the best of Romantic miniatures. Robert's Oboe Romances are the best known oboe chamber pieces of the period, and listening to the start of the first one it's easy to hear why. Less well known, but equally fine, are Clara's three Romances; here's the start of her first one.
The cor anglais features too - in, for example, the haunting opening bars of Robert's Adagio & Allegro, and also in an unusually spritely role in the first of his popular-style five pieces Stücke im Volkston.
[CD number 2]
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