Introducing Wind Instruments

Piece – Jacques Ibert (Flute)

Having played the flute for 16 years I might be a little bit biased here. I also decided to listen to this piece as it was the only one on the list I hadn't actually played. This piece is similar to many pieces of French flute of the era; long expressive melodic lines with interjections of rapid flourishes and arpeggios to show off the flute’s dexterity and speed of tonguing that is possible. Each melodic line encompasses a large range, often up to 2 octaves with jumps of over an octave between some notes. The piece demonstrates the earthy, dark tone that can be created in the lower register contrasted with the pure clarity of the upper register. Equally, the dynamic range available in the lower register compared to the upper register is also apparent; the dynamic range at the bottom end is much more limited. Ibert writes some very quiet passages at the upper end of the flute’s range which, whilst challenging, is possible.   

Six Metamorphoses after Ovid – Benjamin Britten (Oboe)

I found this piece showed how the tone of the instrument changes through its range; from a powerful almost trumpet like sound at the bottom to a reedy, nasal and fragile sound at the top. Clearly the pitch you write at for the oboe will have a large effect of the sound and tone quality generated. Whilst the oboe doesn't have as large a range as some of the other instruments, it isn't a limiting factor. Britten uses almost all of the oboe’s range and a large dynamic contrast is demonstrated; though it is clear that playing loud low in the register is much easier than at the top. Whilst the oboe doesn't necessarily have the same dexterity as the flute of clarinet, the piece requires some impressively fast fingering and rapid tonguing. It also shows the variety of expressive and tone colour available on the instrument, but also the lengths of phrases that are available; due to the resistance the double reed provides less air is used to generate notes, thus longer phrases can be achieved compared to the flute or clarinet.

Fantasy for Clarinet – Malcolm Arnold (Clarinet)

I thought this piece showed off the clarinet’s potential very well. It uses a large range and shows the dexterity of the instrument; how it is possible to seamlessly jump between different octaves and play rapid scalic passages. It also shows the extremes of dynamic range and evenness of tone available through the whole range.

Saxophone Sonata Op.19 – Paul Creston (Saxophone)

I'm not as familiar with the saxophone as with the other woodwind instruments as it’s not a commonly used orchestral instrument, but I have played with them in wind bands and other ensembles.  The saxophone has a much reedier sound than the clarinet even though they are both single reed instruments. I also got the impression listening to this piece that it has a more piercing sound than the clarinet and that it may overpower other instruments; whilst it sounded as though a similar dynamic range to the clarinet is possible, a true pianissimo is much harder to achieve but loud passages are effortless. The sound produced when playing quieter also sounded much more nasal and reedy than the loud passages; the tone quality definitely changed when playing quietly. The piece also showed the saxophone to have a similar level of dexterity to the clarinet.  

Rhapsody for Solo Bassoon - Willson Osborne (Bassoon)

The opening of this piece showed the ability to play low, quiet passages on the bassoon and create a real atmosphere of tension and mystery. The tone in the lower register is full bodied and rounded, becoming progressively more reedy and weaker as it goes high in a similar way to the oboe. It sounds very fragile at the extreme top end of the register which could be an effective sound when required. The piece made the bassoon sound a bit like a lumbering giant in terms of its dexterity, but it portrayed a sense of sorrow and mourning very well. It also showed the dynamic range available, although it didn't sound as vast as for the clarinet.