The oboe ( ) is a type of double reed

woodwind instrument Woodwind instruments are a family of musical instruments within the greater category of wind instruments. Common examples include flute, clarinet, oboe, bassoon, and saxophone. There are two main types of woodwind instruments: flutes and r ...

. Oboes are usually made of wood, but may also be made of synthetic materials, such as plastic, resin, or hybrid composites. The most common oboe plays in the treble or soprano range. A soprano oboe measures roughly long, with metal keys, a conical bore and a flared bell. Sound is produced by blowing into the

reed Reed or Reeds may refer to: Science, technology, biology, and medicine * Reed bird (disambiguation) * Reed pen, writing implement in use since ancient times * Reed (plant), one of several tall, grass-like wetland plants of the order Poales * ...

at a sufficient air pressure, causing it to vibrate with the air column. The distinctive tone is versatile and has been described as "bright". When the word ''oboe'' is used alone, it is generally taken to mean the treble instrument rather than other instruments of the family, such as the

bass oboe The bass oboe or baritone oboe is a double reed instrument in the woodwind family. It is essentially twice the size of a regular (soprano) oboe so it sounds an octave lower; it has a deep, full tone somewhat akin to that of its higher-pitched c ...

, the cor anglais (English horn), or oboe d'amore. Today, the oboe is commonly used as orchestral or solo instrument in symphony orchestras, concert bands and chamber ensembles. The oboe is especially used in classical music,

film music A film score is original music written specifically to accompany a film. The score comprises a number of orchestral, instrumental, or choral pieces called cues, which are timed to begin and end at specific points during the film in order to e ...

, some genres of

folk music Folk music is a music genre that includes traditional folk music and the contemporary genre that evolved from the former during the 20th-century folk revival. Some types of folk music may be called world music. Traditional folk music has b ...

, and is occasionally heard in

jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, with its roots in blues and ragtime. Since the 1920s Jazz Age, it has been recognized as a m ...

, rock, pop, and

popular music Popular music is music with wide appeal that is typically distributed to large audiences through the music industry. These forms and styles can be enjoyed and performed by people with little or no musical training.Popular Music. (2015). ''Fu ...

. The oboe is widely recognized as the instrument that tunes the orchestra with its distinctive 'A'. A musician who plays the oboe is called an oboist.

Sound

In comparison to other modern

s, the treble oboe is sometimes referred to as having a "bright and penetrating" voice. ''The Sprightly Companion'', an instruction book published by

Henry Playford Henry Playford (1657 – c. 1707) was an English music publisher, the younger son and only known surviving child of John Playford, with whom he entered business. His father died around 1686, but for some time before that he was in poor health. Hen ...

in 1695, describes the oboe as "Majestical and Stately, and not much Inferior to the Trumpet". In the play ''

Angels in America ''Angels in America: A Gay Fantasia on National Themes'' is a two-part play by American playwright Tony Kushner. The work won numerous awards, including the Pulitzer Prize for Drama, the Tony Award for Best Play, and the Drama Desk Award f ...

'' the sound is described as like "that of a duck if the duck were a songbird". The rich

timbre In music, timbre ( ), also known as tone color or tone quality (from psychoacoustics), is the perceived sound quality of a musical note, sound or tone. Timbre distinguishes different types of sound production, such as choir voices and musica ...

is derived from its

conical bore In music, the bore of a wind instrument (including woodwind and brass) is its interior chamber. This defines a flow path through which air travels, which is set into vibration to produce sounds. The shape of the bore has a strong influence on t ...

(as opposed to the generally cylindrical bore of flutes and clarinets). As a result, oboes are easier to hear over other instruments in large ensembles due to its penetrating sound. The highest note is a semitone lower than the nominally highest note of the B clarinet. Since the clarinet has a wider range, the lowest note of the B clarinet is significantly deeper (a minor sixth) than the lowest note of the oboe. Music for the standard oboe is written in concert pitch (i.e., it is not a transposing instrument), and the instrument has a soprano range, usually from B₃ to G₆. Orchestras tune to a

concert A Concert pitch is the pitch (music), pitch reference to which a group of musical instruments are musical tuning, tuned for a performance. Concert pitch may vary from musical ensemble, ensemble to ensemble, and has varied widely over music history. ...

played by the first oboe. According to the League of American Orchestras, this is done because the pitch is secure and its penetrating sound makes it ideal for tuning. The pitch of the oboe is affected by the way in which the

is made. The reed has a significant effect on the sound. Variations in cane and other construction materials, the age of the reed, and differences in scrape and length all affect the pitch. German and French reeds, for instance, differ in many ways, causing the sound to vary accordingly. Weather conditions such as temperature and humidity also affect the pitch. Skilled oboists adjust their

embouchure Embouchure () or lipping is the use of the lips, facial muscles, tongue, and teeth in playing a wind instrument. This includes shaping the lips to the mouthpiece of a woodwind instrument or the mouthpiece of a brass instrument. The word is o ...

to compensate for these factors. Subtle manipulation of embouchure and air pressure allows the oboist to express timbre and dynamics.

Reeds

The oboe uses a double reed, similar to that used for the bassoon. Most professional oboists make their reeds to suit their individual needs. By making their reeds, oboists can precisely control factors such as tone color, intonation, and responsiveness. They can also account for individual embouchure, oral cavity, oboe angle, and air support. 6 Oboen

Novice oboists rarely make their own reeds, as the process is difficult and time consuming, and frequently purchase reeds from a music store instead. Commercially available cane reeds are available in several degrees of hardness; a medium reed is very popular, and most beginners use medium-soft reeds. These reeds, like clarinet, saxophone, and bassoon reeds, are made from ''

Arundo donax ''Arundo donax'' is a tall perennial cane. It is one of several so-called reed species. It has several common names including giant cane, elephant grass, carrizo, arundo, Spanish cane, Colorado river reed, wild cane, and giant reed. ''Arundo'' a ...

''. As oboists gain more experience, they may start making their own reeds after the model of their teacher or buying handmade reeds (usually from a professional oboist) and using special tools including gougers, pre-gougers, guillotines, knives, and other tools to make and adjust reeds to their liking. The reed is considered the part of oboe that makes the instrument so difficult because the individual nature of each reed means that it is hard to achieve a consistent sound. Slight variations in temperature, humidity, altitude, weather, and climate can also have an effect on the sound of the reed, as well as minute changes in the physique of the reed. Oboists often prepare several reeds to achieve a consistent sound, as well as to prepare for environmental factors such as chipping of a reed or other hazards. Oboists may have different preferred methods for soaking their reeds to produce optimal sounds; the most preferred method tends to be to soak the oboe reed in water before playing. Plastic oboe reeds are rarely used, and are less readily available than plastic reeds for other instruments, such as the clarinet. However, they do exist, and are produced by brands such as Legere.

History

In English, prior to 1770, the standard instrument was called a ''hautbois'', ''hoboy'', or ''French hoboy'' ( ). This was borrowed from the French name, , which is a compound word made up of ''haut'' ("high", "loud") and ''bois'' ("wood", "woodwind"). Literally translated, the French word means 'high-pitched woodwind' in English. The spelling of ''oboe'' was adopted into English c. 1770 from the Italian ''oboè'', a transliteration of the 17th-century pronunciation of the French name. The regular oboe first appeared in the mid-17th century, when it was called a ''hautbois''. This name was also used for its predecessor, the

shawm The shawm () is a conical bore, double-reed woodwind instrument made in Europe from the 12th century to the present day. It achieved its peak of popularity during the medieval and Renaissance periods, after which it was gradually eclipsed by th ...

, from which the basic form of the ''hautbois'' was derived. Major differences between the two instruments include the division of the ''hautbois'' into three sections, or joints (which allowed for more precise manufacture), and the elimination of the ''

pirouette In dance and gymnastics, a turn is a rotation of the body about the vertical axis. It is usually a complete rotation of the body, although quarter (90°) and half (180°) turns are possible for some types of turns. Multiple, consecutive turns are ...

'', the wooden ledge below the reed which allowed players to rest their lips. The exact date and place of origin of the ''hautbois'' are obscure, as are the individuals who were responsible. Circumstantial evidence, such as the statement by the flautist composer

Michel de la Barre Michel de la Barre (c. 1675 – 15 March 1745) was a French composer and renowned flautist known as being the first person to publish solo flute music. He played at the Académie Royale de Musique, the Musettes and Hautbois de Poitou and the c ...

in his ''Memoire'', points to members of the Philidor (Filidor) and

Hotteterre Jacques-Martin Hotteterre (29 September 167316 July 1763), also known as Jacques Martin or Jacques Hotteterre, was a French composer and flautist who was the most celebrated of a family of wind instrument makers and wind performers. Biogra ...

families. The instrument may in fact have had multiple inventors. The ''hautbois'' quickly spread throughout Europe, including Great Britain, where it was called ''hautboy'', ''hoboy'', ''hautboit'', ''howboye'', and similar variants of the French name. It was the main melody instrument in early military bands, until it was succeeded by the clarinet. The standard Baroque oboe is generally made of

boxwood ''Buxus'' is a genus of about seventy species in the family Buxaceae. Common names include box or boxwood. The boxes are native to western and southern Europe, southwest, southern and eastern Asia, Africa, Madagascar, northernmost South ...

and has three keys: a "great" key and two side keys (the side key is often doubled to facilitate use of either the right or left hand on the bottom holes). In order to produce higher pitches, the player has to " overblow", or increase the air stream to reach the next harmonic. Notable oboe-makers of the period are the Germans Jacob Denner and J.H. Eichentopf, and the English Thomas Stanesby (died 1734) and his son Thomas Jr (died 1754). The range for the Baroque oboe comfortably extends from C₄ to D₆. With the resurgence of interest in early music in the mid-20th century, a few makers began producing copies to specifications taken from surviving historical instruments.

Classical

The Classical period brought a regular oboe whose bore was gradually narrowed, and the instrument became outfitted with several keys, among them those for the notes D, F, and G. A key similar to the modern octave key was also added called the "slur key", though it was at first used more like the "flick" keys on the modern German bassoon. Only later did French instrument makers redesign the octave key to be used in the manner of the modern key (i.e. held open for the upper register, closed for the lower). The narrower bore allows the higher notes to be more easily played, and composers began to more often utilize the oboe's upper register in their works. Because of this, the oboe's

tessitura In music, tessitura (, pl. ''tessiture'', "texture"; ) is the most acceptable and comfortable vocal range for a given singer or less frequently, musical instrument, the range in which a given type of voice presents its best-sounding (or characte ...

in the Classical era was somewhat broader than that found in Baroque works. The range for the Classical oboe extends from C₄ to F₆ (using the

scientific pitch notation Scientific pitch notation (SPN), also known as American standard pitch notation (ASPN) and international pitch notation (IPN), is a method of specifying musical pitch by combining a musical note name (with accidental if needed) and a number ide ...

system), though some German and Austrian oboes are capable of playing one half-step lower. Classical-era composers who wrote concertos for oboe include Mozart (both the solo concerto in C major K. 314/285d and the lost original of Sinfonia Concertante in E major K. 297b, as well as a fragment of F major concerto K. 417f),

Haydn Franz Joseph Haydn ( , ; 31 March 173231 May 1809) was an Austrian composer of the Classical period. He was instrumental in the development of chamber music such as the string quartet and piano trio. His contributions to musical form have led ...

(both the Sinfonia Concertante in B Hob. I:105 and the spurious concerto in C major Hob. VIIg:C1),

Beethoven Ludwig van Beethoven (baptised 17 December 177026 March 1827) was a German composer and pianist. Beethoven remains one of the most admired composers in the history of Western music; his works rank amongst the most performed of the classic ...

(the F major concerto, Hess 12, of which only sketches survive, though the second movement was reconstructed in the late 20th century), and numerous other composers including Johann Christian Bach, Johann Christian Fischer,

Jan Antonín Koželuh Jan Antonín Koželuh (also Johann Antonin Kozeluch, Koscheluch, Jan Evangelista Antonín Tomáš; 14 December 1738 in Velvary – 3 February 1814 in Prague) was a Czech composer. Life Koželuh was a pupil of Josef Seger and studied under the Je ...

, and Ludwig August Lebrun. Many solos exist for the regular oboe in chamber, symphonic, and operatic compositions from the Classical era.

Wiener oboe

The Wiener oboe (Viennese oboe) is a type of modern oboe that retains the essential bore and tonal characteristics of the historical oboe. The Akademiemodel Wiener Oboe, first developed in the late 19th century by Josef Hajek from earlier instruments by C. T. Golde of Dresden (1803–73), is now made by several makers such as André Constantinides, Karl Rado, Guntram Wolf, Christian Rauch and Yamaha. It has a wider internal bore, a shorter and broader reed and the fingering-system is very different from the conservatoire oboe. In ''The Oboe'', Geoffrey Burgess and Bruce Haynes write "The differences are most clearly marked in the middle register, which is reedier and more pungent, and the upper register, which is richer in harmonics on the Viennese oboe". Guntram Wolf describes them: "From the concept of the bore, the Viennese oboe is the last representative of the historical oboes, adapted for the louder, larger orchestra, and fitted with an extensive mechanism. Its great advantage is the ease of speaking, even in the lowest register. It can be played very expressively and blends well with other instruments." The Viennese oboe is, along with the Vienna horn, perhaps the most distinctive member of the Wiener Philharmoniker instrumentarium.

Conservatoire oboe

This oboe was developed further in the 19th century by the Triébert family of Paris. Using the Boehm flute as a source of ideas for key work, Guillaume Triébert and his sons, Charles and Frederic, devised a series of increasingly complex yet functional key systems. A variant form using large tone holes, the Boehm system oboe, was never in common use, though it was used in some military bands in Europe into the 20th century. F. Lorée of Paris made further developments to the modern instrument. Minor improvements to the bore and key work have continued through the 20th century, but there has been no fundamental change to the general characteristics of the instrument for several decades.

Modern oboe

The modern standard oboe is most commonly made from

grenadilla ''Dalbergia melanoxylon'' (African blackwood, grenadilla, or mpingo) is a flowering plant in the family Fabaceae, native to seasonally dry regions of Africa from Senegal east to Eritrea and south to the north-eastern parts of South Africa. The ...

, also known as African blackwood, though some manufacturers also make oboes out of other members of the genus ''

Dalbergia ''Dalbergia'' is a large genus of small to medium-size trees, shrubs and lianas in the pea family, Fabaceae, subfamily Faboideae. It was recently assigned to the informal monophyletic ''Dalbergia'' clade (or tribe): the Dalbergieae. ...

'', which includes

cocobolo Cocobolo is a tropical hardwood of Central American trees belonging to the genus '' Dalbergia''. Only the heartwood of cocobolo is used; it is usually orange or reddish-brown, often with darker irregular traces weaving through the wood. The hear ...

rosewood Rosewood refers to any of a number of richly hued timbers, often brownish with darker veining, but found in many different hues. True rosewoods All genuine rosewoods belong to the genus ''Dalbergia''. The pre-eminent rosewood appreciated ...

, and violetwood (also known as kingwood).

Ebony Ebony is a dense black/brown hardwood, coming from several species in the genus '' Diospyros'', which also contains the persimmons. Unlike most woods, ebony is dense enough to sink in water. It is finely textured and has a mirror finish when ...

(genus

Diospyros ''Diospyros'' is a genus of over 700 species of deciduous and evergreen trees and shrubs. The majority are native to the tropics, with only a few species extending into temperate regions. Individual species valued for their hard, heavy, dark tim ...

) has also been used. Student model oboes are often made from plastic resin to make the instrument cheaper and more durable. The oboe has an extremely narrow

. It is played with a double reed consisting of two thin blades of cane tied together on a small-diameter metal tube (staple) which is inserted into the reed socket at the top of the instrument. The commonly accepted range for the oboe extends from B₃ to about G₆, over two and a half octaves, though its common

lies from C₄ to E₆. Some student oboes only extend down to B₃ (the key for B is not present). A modern oboe with the "full conservatoire" ("conservatory" in the US) or Gillet key system has 45 pieces of keywork, with the possible additions of a third-octave key and alternate (left little finger) F- or C-key. The keys are usually made of

nickel silver Nickel silver, Maillechort, German silver, Argentan, new silver, nickel brass, albata, alpacca, is a copper alloy with nickel and often zinc. The usual formulation is 60% copper, 20% nickel and 20% zinc. Nickel silver does not contain the eleme ...

, and are

silver Silver is a chemical element with the symbol Ag (from the Latin ', derived from the Proto-Indo-European ''h₂erǵ'': "shiny" or "white") and atomic number 47. A soft, white, lustrous transition metal, it exhibits the highest electrical ...

- or occasionally

gold Gold is a chemical element with the symbol Au (from la, aurum) and atomic number 79. This makes it one of the higher atomic number elements that occur naturally. It is a bright, slightly orange-yellow, dense, soft, malleable, and ductile me ...

-plated. Besides the full conservatoire system, oboes are also made using the British thumbplate system. Most have "semi-automatic" octave keys, in which the second-octave action closes the first, and some have a fully automatic octave key system, as used on

saxophones The saxophone (often referred to colloquially as the sax) is a type of single-reed woodwind instrument with a conical body, usually made of brass. As with all single-reed instruments, sound is produced when a reed on a mouthpiece vibrates to pr ...

. Some full-conservatory oboes have finger holes covered with rings rather than plates ("open-holed"), and most of the professional models have at least the right-hand third key open-holed. Professional oboes used in the UK and

Iceland Iceland ( is, Ísland; ) is a Nordic island country in the North Atlantic Ocean and in the Arctic Ocean. Iceland is the most sparsely populated country in Europe. Iceland's capital and largest city is Reykjavík, which (along with its s ...

frequently feature conservatoire system combined with a thumb plate. Releasing the thumb plate has the same effect as pressing down the right-hand index-finger key. This produces alternate options which eliminate the necessity for most of the common cross-intervals (intervals where two or more keys need to be released and pressed down simultaneously), as cross-intervals are much more difficult to execute in such a way that the sound remains clear and continuous throughout the frequency change (a quality also called

legato In music performance and notation, legato (; Italian for "tied together"; French ''lié''; German ''gebunden'') indicates that musical notes are played or sung smoothly and connected. That is, the player makes a transition from note to note wit ...

and often called for in the oboe repertoire).

Other members of the oboe family

The standard oboe has several siblings of various sizes and playing ranges. The most widely known and used today is the cor anglais (English horn) the tenor (or alto) member of the family. A transposing instrument; it is pitched in F, a perfect fifth lower than the oboe. The oboe d'amore, the alto (or mezzo-soprano) member of the family, is pitched in A, a minor third lower than the oboe. J.S. Bach made extensive use of both the oboe d'amore as well as the ''taille'' and

oboe da caccia The oboe da caccia (; literally "hunting oboe" in Italian), also sometimes referred to as an oboe da silva, is a double reed woodwind instrument in the oboe family, pitched a fifth below the oboe and used primarily in the Baroque period of Europe ...

, Baroque antecedents of the cor anglais. Less common is the

(also called baritone oboe), which sounds one octave lower than the oboe. Delius, Strauss and

Holst Gustav Theodore Holst (born Gustavus Theodore von Holst; 21 September 1874 – 25 May 1934) was an English composer, arranger and teacher. Best known for his orchestral suite ''The Planets'', he composed many other works across a range ...

scored for the instrument. Similar to the bass oboe is the more powerful heckelphone, which has a wider bore and larger tone than the baritone oboe. Only 165 heckelphones have ever been made. Not surprisingly, competent heckelphone players are difficult to find due to the extreme rarity of this particular instrument. The least common of all are the musette (also called oboe musette or piccolo oboe), the sopranino member of the family (it is usually pitched in E or F above the oboe), and the

contrabass oboe The contrabass oboe is a double reed woodwind instrument in the key of C or F, sounding two octaves or an octave and a fifth (respectively) lower than the standard oboe. Recent research, in particular that by oboe historian Bruce Haynes, sugges ...

(typically pitched in C, two octaves deeper than the standard oboe). Folk versions of the oboe, sometimes equipped with extensive keywork, are found throughout Europe. These include the musette (France) and the piston oboe and bombarde (

Brittany Brittany (; french: link=no, Bretagne ; br, Breizh, or ; Gallo: ''Bertaèyn'' ) is a peninsula, historical country and cultural area in the west of modern France, covering the western part of what was known as Armorica during the period ...

), the

piffero The ''piffero'' () or ''piffaro'' is a double-reed musical instrument of the oboe family with a conical bore ( Sachs-Hornbostel category 422.112). It is used to play music in the tradition of the ', an area of mountains and valleys in the north-w ...

and ciaramella (Italy), and the xirimia (also spelled

chirimia Chirimía (sometimes chirisuya in Peru) is a Spanish term for a type of woodwind instrument similar to an oboe. The chirimía is a member of the shawm family of double-reed instruments, introduced to North, Central and South America in the sixtee ...

) (Spain). Many of these are played in tandem with local forms of

bagpipe Bagpipes are a woodwind instrument using enclosed reeds fed from a constant reservoir of air in the form of a bag. The Great Highland bagpipes are well known, but people have played bagpipes for centuries throughout large parts of Europe, ...

, particularly with the Italian müsa and zampogna or Breton biniou.

Notable classical works featuring the oboe

* Tomaso Albinoni, Oboe (and two-oboe) Concerti *

Georg Philipp Telemann Georg Philipp Telemann (; – 25 June 1767) was a German Baroque composer and multi-instrumentalist. Almost completely self-taught in music, he became a composer against his family's wishes. After studying in Magdeburg, Zellerfeld, and Hild ...

, oboe concerti and sonatas, trio sonatas for oboe, recorder, and basso continuo * Antonio Vivaldi, at least 15 oboe concertos *

Johann Sebastian Bach Johann Sebastian Bach (28 July 1750) was a German composer and musician of the late Baroque period. He is known for his orchestral music such as the '' Brandenburg Concertos''; instrumental compositions such as the Cello Suites; keyboard wo ...

, Brandenburg concertos nos. 1 and 2, Concerto for

Violin The violin, sometimes known as a '' fiddle'', is a wooden chordophone ( string instrument) in the violin family. Most violins have a hollow wooden body. It is the smallest and thus highest-pitched instrument ( soprano) in the family in regu ...

and oboe, lost oboe concerti, numerous oboe obbligato lines in the sacred and secular cantatas *

Tchaikovsky Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky , group=n ( ; 7 May 1840 – 6 November 1893) was a Russian composer of the Romantic period. He was the first Russian composer whose music would make a lasting impression internationally. He wrote some of the most popu ...

, theme to '' Swan Lake'' * Samuel Barber, ''Canzonetta'', op. 48, for oboe and string orchestra (1977–78, orch. completed by Charles Turner) *

Vincenzo Bellini Vincenzo Salvatore Carmelo Francesco Bellini (; 3 November 1801 – 23 September 1835) was a Sicilian opera composer, who was known for his long-flowing melodic lines for which he was named "the Swan of Catania". Many years later, in 1898, Gius ...

, Concerto in E-flat, for oboe and chamber orchestra consisting of orchestra consisting of two flutes, two oboes, two clarinets, tho bassoons, two French horns, and strings (before 1825) *

Luciano Berio Luciano Berio (24 October 1925 – 27 May 2003) was an Italian composer noted for his experimental work (in particular his 1968 composition ''Sinfonia'' and his series of virtuosic solo pieces titled '' Sequenza''), and for his pioneering work ...

, ''Chemins IV (on Sequenza VII)'', for oboe and string orchestra (1975) *

Harrison Birtwistle Sir Harrison Birtwistle (15 July 1934 – 18 April 2022) was an English composer of contemporary classical music best known for his operas, often based on mythological subjects. Among his many compositions, his better known works include '' T ...

, ''An Interrupted Endless Melody'', for oboe and piano (1991) *

, ''Pulse Sampler'', for oboe and claves (1981) *

Benjamin Britten Edward Benjamin Britten, Baron Britten (22 November 1913 – 4 December 1976, aged 63) was an English composer, conductor, and pianist. He was a central figure of 20th-century British music, with a range of works including opera, other ...

, '' Six Metamorphoses after Ovid'', op. 49, ''Temporal Variations'', ''Two Insect Pieces'', '' Phantasy Quartet'', op. 2 *

Elliott Carter Elliott Cook Carter Jr. (December 11, 1908 – November 5, 2012) was an American modernist composer. One of the most respected composers of the second half of the 20th century, he combined elements of European modernism and American "ultra- ...

, Oboe Concerto (1986–87); ''Trilogy'', for oboe and harp (1992); Quartet for oboe, violin, viola, and cello (2001) * Morton Feldman, ''Oboe and Orchestra'' (1976) * Vivian Fine, Sonatina for Oboe and Piano (1939) *

Domenico Cimarosa Domenico Cimarosa (; 17 December 1749 – 11 January 1801) was an Italian composer of the Neapolitan school and of the Classical period. He wrote more than eighty operas, the best known of which is '' Il matrimonio segreto'' (1792); most of h ...

, Oboe Concerto in C major (arranged) * John Corigliano, Oboe Concerto (1975) *

Miguel del Águila Miguel del Águila (born September 15, 1957) is an Uruguayan-born, American composer of contemporary classical music. Life Miguel del Águila (also spelled Miguel del Aguila), was born in Montevideo. In 1978, del Águila moved to California ...

, ''Summer Song'' for oboe and piano *

Antal Doráti Antal Doráti (, , ; 9 April 1906 – 13 November 1988) was a Hungarian-born conductor and composer who became a naturalized American citizen in 1943. Biography Antal Doráti was born in Budapest, where his father Alexander Doráti was a vi ...

, Duo Concertante for Oboe and Piano * Madeleine Dring, Three Piece Suite arr. Roger Lord * Madeleine Dring, Trio for oboe, flute and piano * Henri Dutilleux, ''Les Citations'' for oboe, harpsichord, double bass and percussion (1991) *

Eric Ewazen Eric Ewazen (; born March 1, 1954, Cleveland, Ohio) is an American composer and teacher. Biography Ewazen studied composition under Samuel Adler, Milton Babbitt, Gunther Schuller, Joseph Schwantner, Warren Benson, and Eugene Kurtz at the Ea ...

, ''Down a River of Time'', oboe and string orchestra (1999) *

Eugene Aynsley Goossens Sir Eugene Aynsley Goossens (; 26 May 189313 June 1962) was an English conductor and composer. Biography He was born in Camden Town, London, the son of the Belgian conductor and violinist Eugène Goossens (''fils'', 1867–1958) and Annie ...

, Concerto for Oboe, Op. 45 (1928) *

Edvard Grieg Edvard Hagerup Grieg ( , ; 15 June 18434 September 1907) was a Norwegian composer and pianist. He is widely considered one of the foremost Romantic era composers, and his music is part of the standard classical repertoire worldwide. His use of ...

, Symphonic Dances Op. 64, no. 2 * George Frideric Handel, "The Arrival of the Queen of Sheba", Oboe Concerto No. 1, No. 2, No. 3 and sonatas * Joseph Haydn (spurious, possibly by Malzat), Oboe Concerto in C major *

Hans Werner Henze Hans Werner Henze (1 July 1926 – 27 October 2012) was a German composer. His large oeuvre of works is extremely varied in style, having been influenced by serialism, atonality, Stravinsky, Italian music, Arabic music and jazz, as well as ...

, ''Doppio concerto'', for oboe, harp, and string orchestra (1966) * Jennifer Higdon, Oboe Concerto, 2005 *

Paul Hindemith Paul Hindemith (; 16 November 189528 December 1963) was a German composer, music theorist, teacher, violist and conductor. He founded the Amar Quartet in 1921, touring extensively in Europe. As a composer, he became a major advocate of the ' ...

, Sonata for Oboe and Piano * Heinz Holliger, Sonata, for unaccompanied oboe (1956–57/99); ''Mobile'', for oboe and harp (1962); Trio, for oboe (doubling English horn), viola, and harp (1966); ''Studie über Mehrklänge'', for unaccompanied oboe (1971); ''Sechs Stücke'', for oboe (doubling oboe d’amore) and harp (1998–99) * Charles Koechlin Sonata for Oboe and Piano, Op. 58 * Antonio Lotti, ''Concerto for oboe d'amore'' *

Witold Lutosławski Witold Roman Lutosławski (; 25 January 1913 – 7 February 1994) was a Polish composer and conductor. Among the major composers of 20th-century classical music, he is "generally regarded as the most significant Polish composer since Szyman ...

, Double Concerto for Oboe, Harp, and Chamber Orchestra *

Bruno Maderna Bruno Maderna (21 April 1920 – 13 November 1973) was an Italian conductor and composer. Life Maderna was born Bruno Grossato in Venice but later decided to take the name of his mother, Caterina Carolina Maderna.Interview with Maderna‘s th ...

, 3 oboe concertos (1962–63) (1967) (1973); ''Grande aulodia'', for flute, oboe, and orchestra (1970), Aulodia for Oboe d´amore (and guitar ad Libitum) * Alessandro Marcello, Concerto in D minor * Bohuslav Martinů, Concerto for Oboe and Small Orchestra * Olivier Messiaen, Concert à quatre *

Darius Milhaud Darius Milhaud (; 4 September 1892 – 22 June 1974) was a French composer, conductor, and teacher. He was a member of Les Six—also known as ''The Group of Six''—and one of the most prolific composers of the 20th century. His compositions ...

, ''Les rêves de Jacob'', op. 294, for oboe, violin, viola, cello, and doublebass (1949); Sonatina, op. 337, for oboe and piano (1954) *

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (27 January 17565 December 1791), baptised as Joannes Chrysostomus Wolfgangus Theophilus Mozart, was a prolific and influential composer of the Classical period. Despite his short life, his rapid pace of composition r ...

, Oboe Concerto in C major, Quartet in F major for oboe, violin, viola, and cello *

Carl Nielsen Carl August Nielsen (; 9 June 1865 – 3 October 1931) was a Danish composer, conductor and violinist, widely recognized as his country's most prominent composer. Brought up by poor yet musically talented parents on the island of Funen, he ...

, Two

Fantasy Pieces for Oboe and Piano Carl Nielsen's Fantasy Pieces for Oboe and Piano (''Fantasistykker for obo og klavier''), Opus 2, were composed shortly after the composer had taken up the post of second violinist in the Royal Danish Orchestra in 1889. The two pieces which make up ...

, op. 2 * Antonio Pasculli, oboe concertos for oboe and piano/orchestra * Francis Poulenc, Oboe Sonata *

Sergei Prokofiev Sergei Sergeyevich Prokofiev; alternative transliterations of his name include ''Sergey'' or ''Serge'', and ''Prokofief'', ''Prokofieff'', or ''Prokofyev''., group=n (27 April .S. 15 April1891 – 5 March 1953) was a Russian composer, ...

, Quintet for Oboe, Clarinet, Violin, Viola and Bass op. 39 (1923) *

, Peter and the Wolf, the duck * Maurice Ravel, ''

Le Tombeau de Couperin ''Le Tombeau de Couperin'' (''The Couperin's Grave'') is a suite for solo piano by Maurice Ravel, composed between 1914 and 1917. The piece is in six movements, based on those of a traditional Baroque suite. Each movement is dedicated to the mem ...

'' *

Edmund Rubbra Edmund Rubbra (; 23 May 190114 February 1986) was a British composer. He composed both instrumental and vocal works for soloists, chamber groups and full choruses and orchestras. He was greatly esteemed by fellow musicians and was at the peak o ...

, Oboe Sonata * Camille Saint-Saëns, Sonata for Oboe and Piano in D Major * Robert Schumann,

Three Romances for Oboe and Piano The Three Romances for Oboe and Piano, Op. 94 (german: Drei Romanzen) is a composition by Robert Schumann, his only composition for oboe. It was composed in December 1849. The work consists of three short pieces in A-B-A form, and it was written d ...

Karlheinz Stockhausen Karlheinz Stockhausen (; 22 August 1928 – 5 December 2007) was a German composer, widely acknowledged by critics as one of the most important but also controversial composers of the 20th-century classical music, 20th and early 21st-century ...

, '' In Freundschaft'', for oboe, Nr. 46⅔, ''

Oboe The oboe ( ) is a type of double reed woodwind instrument. Oboes are usually made of wood, but may also be made of synthetic materials, such as plastic, resin, or hybrid composites. The most common oboe plays in the treble or soprano range. ...

'' for oboe and electronic music (from ''Orchester-Finalisten'', scene 2 of ''Mittwoch aus Licht'') * Richard Strauss, Oboe Concerto * Igor Stravinsky, ''Pastorale'' (transcribed in 1933 for Violin and Wind Quartet) *

Bernd Alois Zimmermann Bernd Alois Zimmermann (20 March 1918 – 10 August 1970) was a German composer. He is perhaps best known for his opera ''Die Soldaten'', which is regarded as one of the most important German operas of the 20th century, after those of Berg. As a ...

, Concerto for Oboe and Small Orchestra (1952) *

Toru Takemitsu TORU or Toru may refer to: * TORU, spacecraft system * Toru (given name), Japanese male given name * Toru, Pakistan, village in Mardan District of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan *Tõru Tõru is a village in Saaremaa Parish, Saare County in western ...

, Distance for Oboe and Shō d lib.(1971) *

, Entre-Temps for Oboe and String Quartett (1981) * Joan Tower, '' Island Prelude'' (1988) *

Isang Yun Isang Yun, also spelled Yun I-sang (17 September 1917 – 3 November 1995), was a Korean-born composer who made his later career in West Germany. Early life and education Yun was born in Sancheong (Sansei), Korea under Japanese rule, Chōsen ...

, Concerto for Oboe (Oboe d'amore) and Orchestra (1990) *

Josef Tal Josef Tal ( he, יוסף טל; September 18, 1910 – August 25, 2008) was an Israeli composer. He wrote three Hebrew operas; four German operas, dramatic scenes; six symphonies; 13 concerti; chamber music, including three string quartets; ins ...

, Duo for oboe & English horn (1992) * Ralph Vaughan Williams, Concerto for Oboe and Strings, '' Ten Blake Songs'' for oboe and tenor * John Woolrich, Oboe Concerto (1996) *

Jan Dismas Zelenka Jan Dismas Zelenka (16 October 1679 – 23 December 1745), baptised Jan Lukáš Zelenka was a Czech composer and musician of the Baroque period. His music is admired for its harmonic inventiveness and mastery of counterpoint. Zelenka was rais ...

(1723) Concertanti, Oboe Trios and other works *

Ellen Taaffe Zwilich Ellen Taaffe Zwilich ( ; born April 30, 1939) is an American composer, the first female composer to win the Pulitzer Prize for Music. Her early works are marked by atonal exploration, but by the late 1980s, she had shifted to a postmodernist, n ...

, Oboe Concerto * Flor Alpaerts, Concertstuk for Oboe and Piano * Lior Navok ''Fuzzy'', for oboe and piano (2018)

Unaccompanied pieces

, '' Six Metamorphoses after Ovid'', Op.49 (1951) *

Carlos Chávez Carlos Antonio de Padua Chávez y Ramírez (13 June 1899 – 2 August 1978) was a Mexican composer, conductor, music theorist, educator, journalist, and founder and director of the Mexican Symphonic Orchestra. He was influenced by nativ ...

, ''Upingos'' (1957) *

, ''Islamite Dance'' (1962); ''Searching For Lambs'', Op. 49 (1930); ''When Thou Art Dead'', Op. 43 (1926) *

, '' Sequenza VII'' (1969) *

, ''Piri'' (1971) *

, Five Pieces for Solo Oboe (1980) *

Peter Maxwell Davies Sir Peter Maxwell Davies (8 September 1934 – 14 March 2016) was an English composer and conductor, who in 2004 was made Master of the Queen's Music. As a student at both the University of Manchester and the Royal Manchester College of Musi ...

, ''First Grace of Light'' (1991) * John Palmer, ''Hinayana'' (1999), including extended techniques

Use in non-classical music

Jazz

The oboe remains uncommon in

music, but there have been notable uses of the instrument. Some early bands in the 1920s and '30s, most notably that of

Paul Whiteman Paul Samuel Whiteman (March 28, 1890 – December 29, 1967) was an American bandleader, composer, orchestral director, and violinist. As the leader of one of the most popular dance bands in the United States during the 1920s and early 1930s, W ...

, included it for coloristic purposes. The multi-instrumentalist

Garvin Bushell Garvin Bushell ''(né'' Garvin Lamont Payne; September 25, 1902 – October 31, 1991) was an American woodwind multi-instrumentalist. Biography Bushell was born in Springfield, Ohio, to Alexander Payne, Jr. (1875–1908) and Effie Penn ''( ...

(1902–1991) played the oboe in jazz bands as early as 1924 and used the instrument throughout his career, eventually recording with

John Coltrane John William Coltrane (September 23, 1926 – July 17, 1967) was an American jazz saxophonist, bandleader and composer. He is among the most influential and acclaimed figures in the history of jazz and 20th-century music. Born and raise ...

in 1961.

Gil Evans Ian Ernest Gilmore Evans (né Green; May 13, 1912 – March 20, 1988) was a Canadian–American jazz pianist, arranger, composer and bandleader. He is widely recognized as one of the greatest orchestrators in jazz, playing an important role i ...

featured oboe in sections of his famous ''

Sketches of Spain ''Sketches of Spain'' is an album by Miles Davis, recorded between November 1959 and March 1960 at the Columbia 30th Street Studio in New York City. An extended version of the second movement of Joaquín Rodrigo's ''Concierto de Aranjuez'' (1939) ...

'' collaboration with trumpeter

Miles Davis Miles Dewey Davis III (May 26, 1926September 28, 1991) was an American trumpeter, bandleader, and composer. He is among the most influential and acclaimed figures in the history of jazz and 20th-century music. Davis adopted a variety of musi ...

. Though primarily a

tenor saxophone The tenor saxophone is a medium-sized member of the saxophone family, a group of instruments invented by Adolphe Sax in the 1840s. The tenor and the alto are the two most commonly used saxophones. The tenor is pitched in the key of B (while ...

and flute player, Yusef Lateef was among the first (in 1961) to use the oboe as a solo instrument in modern jazz performances and recordings. Composer and double bassist Charles Mingus gave the oboe a brief but prominent role (played by Dick Hafer) in his composition "I.X. Love" on the 1963 album '' Mingus Mingus Mingus Mingus Mingus''. With the birth of jazz fusion in the late 1960s, and its continuous development through the following decade, the oboe became somewhat more prominent, replacing on some occasions the

saxophone The saxophone (often referred to colloquially as the sax) is a type of Single-reed instrument, single-reed woodwind instrument with a conical body, usually made of brass. As with all single-reed instruments, sound is produced when a reed (mouthpi ...

as the focal point. The oboe was used with great success by the Welsh

multi-instrumentalist A multi-instrumentalist is a musician who plays two or more musical instruments at a professional level of proficiency. Also known as doubling, the practice allows greater ensemble flexibility and more efficient employment of musicians, where ...

Karl Jenkins in his work with the groups Nucleus and Soft Machine, and by the American

woodwind Woodwind instruments are a family of musical instruments within the greater category of wind instruments. Common examples include flute, clarinet, oboe, bassoon, and saxophone. There are two main types of woodwind instruments: flutes and re ...

player

Paul McCandless Paul Brownlee McCandless Jr. (born March 24, 1947) is an American multi-instrumentalist and founding member of the American jazz group Oregon. He is one of the few jazz oboists. He also plays bass clarinet, English horn, flute and soprano saxoph ...

, co-founder of the

Paul Winter Consort The Paul Winter Consort is an American musical group. Bassist Eliot Wadopian has been a member. Discography Films *''Canyon Consort'' (1985) References External linksLiving Music- Paul Winter's record label {{Authority control American j ...

and later

Oregon Oregon () is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the Western United States. The Columbia River delineates much of Oregon's northern boundary with Washington, while the Snake River delineates much of its eastern boundary with Idaho. T ...

. The 1980s saw an increasing number of oboists try their hand at non-classical work, and many players of note have recorded and performed alternative music on oboe. Some present-day jazz groups influenced by classical music, such as the

Maria Schneider Maria Schneider may refer to: * Maria Schneider (politician) (born 1923), East German politician * Maria Schneider (actress) (1952–2011), French actress * Maria Schneider (musician) Maria Lynn Schneider (born November 27, 1960) is an Americ ...

Orchestra, feature the oboe.

Rock and pop

Indie singer-songwriter and composer Sufjan Stevens, having studied the instrument in school, often includes the instrument in his arrangements and compositions, most frequently in his geographic tone-poems ''

Illinois Illinois ( ) is a state in the Midwestern United States. Its largest metropolitan areas include the Chicago metropolitan area, and the Metro East section, of Greater St. Louis. Other smaller metropolitan areas include, Peoria and Rockf ...

'', ''

Michigan Michigan () is a U.S. state, state in the Great Lakes region, Great Lakes region of the Upper Midwest, upper Midwestern United States. With a population of nearly 10.12 million and an area of nearly , Michigan is the List of U.S. states and ...

''. Peter Gabriel played the oboe while he was a member of Genesis, most prominently on " The Musical Box".

Film music

The oboe is frequently featured in film music, often to underscore a particularly poignant or sad scene, for example in the 1989 film ''

Born on the Fourth of July ''Born on the Fourth of July'', published in 1976, is the best-selling autobiography by Ron Kovic, a paralyzed Vietnam War veteran who became an anti-war activist. Kovic was born on July 4, 1946, and his book's ironic title echoed a famous line ...

''. One of the most prominent uses of the oboe in a film score is Ennio Morricone's "Gabriel's Oboe" theme from the 1986 film '' The Mission''. It is featured as a solo instrument in the theme "Across the Stars" from the John Williams score to the 2002 film '' Star Wars: Episode II – Attack of the Clones''. The oboe is also featured as a solo instrument in the "Love Theme" in

Nino Rota Giovanni Rota Rinaldi (; 3 December 1911 – 10 April 1979), better known as Nino Rota (), was an Italian composer, pianist, conductor and academic who is best known for his film scores, notably for the films of Federico Fellini and Luchino Visco ...

's score to ''

The Godfather ''The Godfather'' is a 1972 American crime film directed by Francis Ford Coppola, who co-wrote the screenplay with Mario Puzo, based on Puzo's best-selling 1969 novel of the same title. The film stars Marlon Brando, Al Pacino, James Caa ...

'' (1972).

Notable oboists

Oboe manufacturers

* Barrington Instruments Inc. ( Barrington, Illinois, US) * Boosey & Hawkes (1851–1970s) (London, UK) * Buffet Crampon ( Mantes-la-Ville, France)
Bulgheroni
( Parè, Italy) * Cabart or Thibouville-Cabart (1869–1974, bought out by F. Lorée) (Paris, France)
Carmichael
(UK) * Chauvet (until ~ 1975) (Paris, France)
Mark Chudnow
(MCW, Sierra) (

Napa, California Napa is the largest city and county seat of Napa County and a principal city of Wine Country in Northern California. Located in the North Bay region of the Bay Area, the city had a population of 77,480 as of the end of 2021. Napa is a major t ...

, US)
Constantinides
( Pöggstall, Austria)
Covey
( Blairsville, Georgia, US)
Dupin
( Moutfort, Luxembourg)
D.W.K
(Seoul, Korea)
Fossati
(incl. Tiery) (Paris, France)
Fox
( South Whitley, Indiana, US)
Frank
(Berlin, Germany) * Graessel (Nürnberg, Germany) * Heckel (until the 1960s) (

Wiesbaden Wiesbaden () is a city in central western Germany and the capital of the state of Hesse. , it had 290,955 inhabitants, plus approximately 21,000 United States citizens (mostly associated with the United States Army). The Wiesbaden urban area ...

, Germany) * Thomas Hiniker Woodwinds ( Rochester, Minnesota, US) * TW Howarth (London, UK)
Incagnoli
(

Rome , established_title = Founded , established_date = 753 BC , founder = King Romulus (legendary) , image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg , map_caption ...

, Italy) * A. Jardé (prior to WWII) (Paris, France) * Josef (

Okinawa is a prefecture of Japan. Okinawa Prefecture is the southernmost and westernmost prefecture of Japan, has a population of 1,457,162 (as of 2 February 2020) and a geographic area of 2,281 km2 (880 sq mi). Naha is the capital and largest city ...

and Tokyo, Japan) * V. Kohlert & Söhne (1840–1948 Graslitz, Czechoslovakia, 1948–1970s Kohlert & Co. Winnenden, Germany)
Kreul
(incl. Mirafone) (

Tübingen Tübingen (, , Swabian: ''Dibenga'') is a traditional university city in central Baden-Württemberg, Germany. It is situated south of the state capital, Stuttgart, and developed on both sides of the Neckar and Ammer rivers. about one in three ...

, Germany) * J. R. LaFleur (1865–1938, bought by Boosey & Hawkes) (London, UK) * Larilee Woodwind Corp. (US) (

Elkhart, Indiana Elkhart ( ) is a city in Elkhart County, Indiana, United States. The city is located east of South Bend, Indiana, east of Chicago, Illinois, and north of Indianapolis, Indiana. Elkhart has the larger population of the two principal cities of th ...

, US) *

A. Laubin A. Laubin, Inc. is an American maker of oboes and English horns, located in Peekskill, New York. The first Laubin oboe was made in 1931 by Alfred Laubin, a performing musician who was dissatisfied with the quality of instruments available at ...

(incl. "A. Barré") (

Peekskill, New York Peekskill is a city in northwestern Westchester County, New York, United States, from New York City. Established as a village in 1816, it was incorporated as a city in 1940. It lies on a bay along the east side of the Hudson River, across from ...

* G. LeBlanc (France, US) * Linton (Elkhart, Indiana, US) * F. Lorée (incl. Cabart) (Paris, France) * Louis (prior to WWII) (London, UK) * Malerne (until 1974, bought by Marigaux) ( La Couture-Boussey, France) *

Marigaux Marigaux, also known as SML (Strasser-Marigaux-Lemaire) is a French manufacturer of high quality woodwind musical instruments. Marigaux is considered one of the world's best oboe-makers. The company has made a line of woodwinds that has also inc ...

(Mantes-la-Ville, France) * Markardt (until 1976, bought by Mönnig) ( Erlbach, Germany) * Mollenhauer (before WWII; now only recorders) ( Fulda, Germany) * Gebr. Mönnig – Oscar Adler (

Markneukirchen Markneukirchen () is a town in the Vogtlandkreis district, in Saxony, Germany, close to the Czech border. It lies in between the Erzgebirge and the Fichtelgebirge in the Elstergebirge, southeast of Plauen, and northeast of Aš (Czech Republic ...

, Germany) * John Packer (

Taunton Taunton () is the county town of Somerset, England, with a 2011 population of 69,570. Its thousand-year history includes a 10th-century monastic foundation, Taunton Castle, which later became a priory. The Normans built a castle owned by the ...

, UK) * Patricola ( Castelnuovo Scrivia, Italy) * Püchner (

Nauheim Nauheim is a municipality in Groß-Gerau district in Hesse, Germany. Nauheim is located southwest of Frankfurt am Main and is part of the metropolitan region of Frankfurt. It lies in the Hessian Ried. Geography Location Nauheim lies 3 ...

, Germany) * Karl Radovanovic (Vienna, Austria) * Rigoutat (incl. RIEC) ( Saint-Maur-des-Fossés, France) * A. Robert (prior to WWII) (Paris, France) * Sand N. Dalton, instrument maker (Lopez Island, Washington) * Selmer (incl. Bundy, Lesher, Omega, Signet) (France, US) * Tom Sparkes (

Hornsby, New South Wales Hornsby is a suburb in the Northern Sydney region, or Upper North Shore of Sydney in the state of New South Wales, Australia, approximately north-west of the Sydney central business district. It is the administrative centre of the local gove ...

, Australia) * Ward & Winterbourne (London, UK) * Guntram Wolf (

Kronach Kronach ( East Franconian: ''Gronich'') is a town in Upper Franconia, Germany, located in the Frankenwald area. It is the capital of the district Kronach. Kronach is the birthplace of Lucas Cranach the Elder and Maximilian von Welsch, as well ...

, Germany) *

Yamaha Yamaha may refer to: * Yamaha Corporation, a Japanese company with a wide range of products and services, established in 1887. The company is the largest shareholder of Yamaha Motor Company (below). ** Yamaha Music Foundation, an organization estab ...

(Japan)

Notes

References

* * * * * * * * *

External links

Peter Wuttke: The Haynes-Catalog
bibliography of literature for oboe written between 1650 and 1800.
A Guide to Choosing an Oboe
Student, intermediate & professional oboes explained.

(archive link)
Oboist Liang Wang: His Reeds Come First
NPR story by Debbie Elliott *
Oboe sound gallery
of clips of dozens of prominent oboists in the United States, Europe, and Australia
Fingering chart
from the ''Woodwind Fingering Guide''
Fingering chart
for Android devices
Pictures of oboe reeds made by famous oboists
{{Authority control Single oboes with conical bore Baroque instruments Orchestral instruments