The repertory of music for solo oboe and orchestra is small, yet oboist Albrecht Mayer has put out consistently interesting programs, beautifully played, that cohere into evocative themes. He has never outdone Longing for Paradise, a collection of works from between the world wars that refer obliquely to the losses of war. Two are real finds. The opening Soliloquy for oboe and orchestra by Elgar dates from the end of the composer's life and was left in a somewhat fragmentary state; the arrangement by Gordon Jacob is also a ...
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The repertory of music for solo oboe and orchestra is small, yet oboist Albrecht Mayer has put out consistently interesting programs, beautifully played, that cohere into evocative themes. He has never outdone Longing for Paradise, a collection of works from between the world wars that refer obliquely to the losses of war. Two are real finds. The opening Soliloquy for oboe and orchestra by Elgar dates from the end of the composer's life and was left in a somewhat fragmentary state; the arrangement by Gordon Jacob is also a completion of sorts, but you'd never know it. The limpid melodies of the work take full advantage of Mayer's cantabile. The Concerto for oboe and small orchestra by Richard Strauss, written in 1945, has the autumnal quality of much of his late music. As Mayer notes, it calls for an effortless quality in some technically complex material; Mayer, as ever, never lets you see him sweat. The arrangement of Ravel's Le tombeau de Couperin by Joachim Schmeißer works well enough given the...
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Add this copy of Longing for Paradise to cart. $35.01, new condition, Sold by Revaluation Books rated 4.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Exeter, DEVON, UNITED KINGDOM, published 2019 by DG.