Oboe Cds… endless amounts…
Saturday July 07 2007
Ever since I worked for Tower Records while attending NEC… in Boston, I’ve been an oboe CD fanatic. I probably own close to 400 CDs (originals), and probably 50 or 60 of them are oboe solos.
Some of my favorites:
Holliger×Bach Concertos (d minor, F major, and A major concertos)
John Mack×Oboe (Mozart Quartet, Loeffler, Britten, etc.)
John de Lancie×Strauss Concerto, etc.
Omar Zoboli×Mosaico Barocco (Bach little g minor sonata BWV… 102?, Marcello, etc.)
Humbert Lucarelli×Strauss, Wolf Ferrari, Vaughn Williams concertos (and Barber Canzonetta)
Some Lesser known Cds are probably
Marcel Tabuteau×Mozart Quartet
Albrecht Mayer×Romantic Oboe Concertos
John de Lancie×Marcello Oboe Concerto on Build your Baby’s Brain
John Ferrillo×Mozart Quartet on Musical Evenings with the Captain vol. II
But my all-time favorite oboe CD hands down goes to—
Alex Klein× Fantasies and Partitas by Bach and Telemann
This CD is by far, the best oboe CD I have ever heard. Not only does Alex Klein show off his technically and physically mastery of the instrument, he shows tonal colors, note/phrase groupings, and inflections which are so ridiculously controlled that it’s an amazing level of quality any oboist should strive for. If I was stuck on an island with a CD player, unlimited amounts of AA batteries, and one CD, this would definitely be it.
Now, I know there are a LOT… of great oboe CDs, but for my small collection, these are the ones I just keep coming back to time and time again.
You’re probably looking at this list as saying, “Where are all the European players?” and I’ll be honest. Albrecht Mayer’s CD is on here, as are a couple of Holliger’s CDs, but I can’t get over the “whaa whaa” vibrato that European players often bring with them. The vibrato is often so wide, that I feel the tonal center is lost and therefore it’s too distracting to the music.
If you’re American, you might be asking, “Where are all of Mack’s CDs and Douvas’ CDs?” I have them all, but the dark-covered Mack CD is definitely my favorite, and it always bothers me a lot when I hear both Mack and Douvas “chew the notes”. What I mean by this is that when they go to do a legato phrasing, they separate every note, even though it is legato, so it doesn’t sound silky smooth. I spent a lot of time posting about this on the Oboe Bboard here if you want to know what I’m talking about.
If you want to hear clips of some of these oboists, a good website is http://oboistgallery.8m.net/ . I helped gather 10 or so of the clips to demonstrate the wide variety of oboe styles.
Judith LeClair and Tom Stacy
Thursday July 05 2007
These are 6 years old, but I just found them. They’re interesting.
Read the RestRichard Killmer Quotes
Thursday July 05 2007
Surfing around the net, I came across Jacqueline Leclair’s Website, which specifically has a PDF… entitled “Famous Quotes Richard Killmer“.
Reading some of these quotes, they almost bring tears to my eyes. (good tears, not bad ones.) When I was a kid, all I ever wanted was to study with Richard Killmer. When I first applied from the Interlochen Arts Academy, I was an arrogant kid and he put me in my place. I didn’t get in, but he told me to keep trying. My Freshman year while at NEC…, I applied again, but I got put on the waiting list, and eventually was turned down. After this drastic rejection, I attempted suicide assuming my lifelong goal was over, but wasn’t too good as tying nooses and was unsuccessful. (that’s another story.)
Anyways, it will still be a dream of mine to study with him, and perhaps for a Ph.D. I might apply to Yale to study with him. Who knows, maybe I’ll even get in?
The final quote listed on the paper is probably the most profound, and could have saved me a lot of heartache years ago. It goes like this:
“Today you are my student. You will always be my student, no matter where you go or what you do. I will always be proud of you for what you want to do, as long as it is something you love doing.”
If I had been able to believe this myself, perhaps I could have overcome my own insecurities as a struggling oboe student. In this day and age, it’s often hard to find fine oboists who are also fine communicators who have compassion and nurturing of young students who are still growing both musically and personally. As long as I am an oboist and a teacher, I will strive to show the same caring and compassion that Richard Killmer showed for others, and showed for me in those few lessons I took with him.
One quote on this website
Upcoming school year, already making plans.
Thursday July 05 2007
I’m soooooo excited to go back to school. It’s been over 5 years since I’ve been in college again, and this time I’m going to give it my all.
One of the reasons why I thought Oregon would be a great fit for me is because when I went for my audition, I saw an old acquaintance of mine, Helena Kopchick. Helena was a Senior High School Camper at Interlochen back in 1999 when I met her, and she went on to Michigan State University where she studied with Barrick Stees while I studied with Daniel Stolper. When Stees left to the Cleveland Institute of Music, she followed him where she finished her Bachelor’s Degree. She has finished her Master’s Degree in performance at the U of O, and is working on her Doctoral now. She’s done some subbing with the Eugene Symphony, Colorado Symphony, and maybe New World as well as Oregon Symphony, but I can’t exactly remember at the moment.
Anyways, I made her PROMISE… me that she’d play a lot with me if I attended, which she did wholeheartedly. So pieces I’m planning to beg her to play with me.
Oboe/Bassoon/Piano ×Poulenc Trio**, Lalliet Terzetto**
Oboe/Bassoon/Clarinet/Horn/(Piano)×Mozart Quintet in Eb Major, Mozart Sinfonia Concertante* (maybe compete in concerto competition?)
Oboe/Bassoon/Flute/Continuo×Telemann Quartet in d minor*
Woodwind Quintet Music×Hindesmith Klein Klammermusik**, Nielsen Quintet*, Barber Summer Music*, Poulenc Sextet**, Mihaud Two Sketches
2 Oboes/Bassoon×All of the Zelenka Trios
Other Chamber Music×Loeffler Trio**, Reinecke Trio**, Stravinsky Pastorale for Violin and Winds, Mozart Quartet**, Britten Phantasy Quartet
- - Pieces I have rehearsed before but not performed.
**- Pieces I have performed publicly on a recital (but didn’t do a sufficient job in my opinion)
Now, the only problem is I need to find people to play with me. I hope there are others who really enjoy chamber music. I find it the most challenging kind of performance, and yet the most rewarding. The flute always wants to ride high, the clarinet is generally low, and the hornist is always late to rehearsal.
Al Genovese (I might get in trouble for this post)
Thursday July 05 2007
I just finished relistening to two of Al Genovese’s Cds which I bought earlier this year, the Musique Francaise one which was recorded 1997 and came out in 1998 and the Alfred Genovese/Peter Serkin one which was recorded in 1992.
I like the Musique Francaise program better. David McGill is one of the single-best sounding bassoonists out there, and his Saint Saens Sonata seriously makes me which I hadn’t played oboe but rather bassoon. I think next year I might try to transpose it for English Horn and play it on a recital.
Genovese’s sound is much better on the later CD which was recorded in 1992. When I arrived in Boston to attend the NEC… in 1998, Genovese had suddenly slipped in a coma from cancer, and died later the next year. So obviously the Musique Francaise recording in 1997 was toward the end, and he was suffering.
That said, his tone on the recording on the Musique Francaise is NOT… PLEASANT… to listen to. Particularly on the last Lalliet Terzetto, I wonder if it really was the last piece they recorded, because it sounds like his mouth was giving out and his reed was dying. Very disappointing. I really wish that he hadn’t recorded this CD because it certainly takes away from his reputation rather than adds to it.
If there are any readers out there who studied with him or heard him live, I’d love to hear your opinion on what made him an extraordinary player. When mentioning his name to Mr. Weber, Mr. Weber replied, “Now there was a man who knew how to ring!” (meaning get lots of “ring” and overtones in his sound). I know that many high-caliber of musicians who have spoken highly of him, but based on these CDs, I can’t distinguish why.
Correction: Apparently Mr. Genovese is alive, well, and healthy! Perhaps my link refers to another Alfred Genovese! Thank for the correction!