ASPEN MUSIC FESTIVAL EVENT – OH BOY, WHAT AN OBOE!

English: The Aspen Concert Orchestra, Aspen Music Festival and School, August 16, 2010. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Last Wednesday we were treated to exceptional performances at the Aspen Music Tent from the Aspen Philharmonic Orchestra – and the Aspen weather! I also learned a lot about an instrument with which I was not particularly familiar, the oboe.

A driving thunderstorm that sounded like a freight train on the Aspen Music Tent’s roof briefly interrupted the first piece by Igor Stravinsky, “Divertimento from the Fairy’s Kiss”, but this did little to dampen the spirits of the performers or the enthusiasm of the audience at this event. In fact, this dynamic aural display actually seemed to electrify the entire experience – a triumvirate of works by Stravinsky, Wolfgang Amadè Mozart (“Oboe Concerto in C major, K.314”, and Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky ( “Symphony No. 5 in E minor, op 64”)

“Divertimento from the Fairy’s Kiss” – Stravinsky and Symphony No. 5 in E minor, op 64 - Tchaikovsky

As a classical music neophyte, I did not realize that Tchaikovsky was one of Stravinsky’s favorite composers until I read the Aspen Music Festival program which also related that the “Divertimento from the Fairy’s Kiss” was, in fact, a tribute to Tchaikovsky - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Le_baiser_de_la_f%C3%A9e_(Stravinsky)

This influence became apparent, even to my inexperienced ear, during the Tchaikovsky portion of the event.

Both works were wonderfully energetic, and the Tchaikovsky piece in particular left me feeling very satisfied with the show and was an enjoyable way to conclude the event.

Oboe Concerto in C major, K.314 – Mozart

Although the full orchestral portions of the show were very uplifting, the Oboe Concerto was the highlight of the event for me. Apparently, it was the only oboe concerto Mozart wrote, and although it was originally written for the oboe, it was ultimately commissioned for the flute (an instrument Mozart was not particularly fond of). He ended up submitting the oboe score that he had already written, reworked and guised as the Flute Concerto No. 2 in D Major - http://aspenmusicfestival.com/digital/2012_5.html#.UBv_DqBdC7t, page 29. -http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oboe_Concerto_(Mozart)

Chi Yuen Cheng ( July, 2012, second prize winner of the International Double Reed Society Oboe Competition in Ohio) was an excellent soloist during this Aspen Music Festival performance and truly made the concert exceptional for me.

Being more accustomed to listening to rock and blues music than other genres, and having only recently started to listen to classical music with any kind of real interest, I never really thought of the oboe as being much of a solo instrument (who ever heard of an oboe in a rock band?). So when I heard the beautiful solos during this piece, I became enthralled with the tone and fluidity of an instrument that I had thought had gone the way of the dinosaurs.

Furthermore, after hearing the solos during this oboe concerto, I realized that I had in fact heard oboe-featured classical and even popular music on the radio before, but thought that the lead instrument I was listening to was the clarinet.

After some post-show research I learned the differences between the instruments: http://www.diffen.com/difference/Clarinet_vs_Oboe.

To my own ear, the oboe sounds more “penetrating”, tighter and more fluid while the clarinet is “fuzzier”. I think I prefer the oboe!

I will now be more aware the oboe when listening to classical (or any other) music on the radio, and I will be on the lookout for the next Aspen Music Festival event that features it.