Suite for Oboe d’Amore with piano
Suite d’Amore (1989) for Oboe d’Amore and Piano is a new publication from United Music Publishing Limited. A special commission for Elizabeth Jacoby, it is a sibling composition to Wilkinson’s Sonata for Cor Anglais and Piano (1987).
Overview
As with Wilkinson’s Cor Anglais Sonata, the Suite for Oboe d’Amore and Piano is now recovered from a thirty-five-year-old fading pencil manuscript and restored for publication by UMP Ltd. The work has a total concert performance duration of approximately twenty minutes, with a recommendation for advanced players and recitalists. The work is also set repertoire as part of the Oboe recital for the Trinity College London ATCL performance examination.
The Oboe d’Amore
A popular Baroque instrument most commonly found in Bach Cantatas, the Oboe d’Amore’s tonal range sits between those of the Oboe and the Cor Anglais (English Horn). The repertoire for the instrument is otherwise small, and Elizabeth Jacoby was keen to promote new music for the Oboe d’Amore. In tone quality, its vocal-like sonorities are unique, and sustained lyrical lines are sine qua non for the instrument’s most expressive style of playing. It is a transposing instrument in A, that is, sounding the interval of a minor third below the written pitch.
The Pieces
The Suite consists of six pieces on mythological themes.
Pastoral
- Pastoral – is the only piece displaying a key signature, A flat major, for the Oboe d’Amore. The piano does not use a key signature. A flowing Andante, lyrically phrased with a preponderance of triplet rhythms and pitch intervals, evokes a natural horn. The expression is simple and natural, setting the scene for a magical, musical depiction of the Gods and Muses that follow.
Ariel
- Ariel – has a brisk tempo, spritely flowing with a one-in-a-bar, triple time signature. Rippling piano accompaniments support outer passages of lilting lyricism in the solo line. Flowing forward, the middle section includes coquettish articulations in a reversal of roles between soloist and accompanist. With roots in Greek mythology, Ariel represents goodness in the world, speaking beautifully and poetically using music or waves of air. Ariel is also a familiar character as Prospero’s spirit entity in Shakespeare’s The Tempest.
Faunus
- Faunus – is in a tempo of Lento con rubato quasi improvisando with bars that alternate between two and three crotchet beats. Faunus, otherwise known as Pan, languidly blows his ‘flute’, evoking mood and mystery.
Hermes
- Hermes – is another spirited piece with a Vivace tempo in a duple meter. Rushing scales contrast nimble, fleeting staccato punctuations in both instruments. Building gradually, there is an exciting climax to a Grandioso section before the music whisks away in a diminishing dynamic, triplet scale. Hermes is often thought to be the mercurial messenger of the Gods, frequently portrayed in paintings and sculptures bearing wings.
Urania
- Urania – Lento quasi recitativo presents a distant, ethereal otherworldliness in a melodic solo line that gives way to a more structured Adagietto in simple, triple time. The full tonal range of the Oboe d’Amore is explored in hanging, sustained chromaticism. Then, transitioning through a misterioso section, the music leads to a closing cadenza. Urania is the muse of astronomy.
Melpomene
- Melpomene – the final piece in the suite, is also the longest. Opening with an affettuoso con rubato movement, there is a sense of a slow waltz occasionally offset, with time changes. Then, a slightly agitated section of music, and then calms to a gentle pause, but is then reawakened with an energetic and dynamic section that climaxes with grandeur. Finally, the opening themes return languidly, and the suite concludes in mystery and wonder tinged with sadness, fading into nothingness. Melpomene is the muse of tragedy in Greek mythology.
Playlist
The complete six-movement playlist is available as a scrolling score audio demonstration on the composer’s YouTube channel.
Trinity College London Recital Diploma Repertoire
Suite d’Amore joins other works by Wilkinson in the listings for Trinity College London recital diploma repertoire. As part of the Oboe recital diploma at Associate level, ATCL, candidates may opt to perform the Suite d’Amore on the Oboe d’Amore.
Related Music
The Sonata for Cor Anglais and Piano, also written for Elizabeth Jacoby in the 1980s, is now approved and listed repertoire for recital examination performance. Read the full post about the Sonata for Cor Anglais and Piano.
8 Pieces of Eight is an album of fun pieces for younger players of the Oboe. Discover 8 Pieces of Eight for Solo Oboe.
For more music by Garry Wilkinson published by UMP Ltd., Click Here.