Oboe Lessons in Denver
Colorado Honor Band offers oboe lessons in Denver, Westminster, Thornton, Centennial, and Littleton, and bassoon lessons in Denver. Our after school music program provides weekly one-on-one coaching and band classes, seasonal public performances, a yearly summer camp, and national and international travel opportunities.
Oboe General Information
The Oboe is a woodwind instrument and, unlike the clarinet or saxophone, is a member of the double-reed family. Double reed instruments are different because their mouthpieces are constructed entirely from two pieces of cane that are tied together.
Oboe’s Role in the Band
The oboe is usually a soloistic instrument in the band. Composers typically write lyrical and smooth parts but like all other instruments, it has to play all types of music and styles. Because of it’s distinctively beautiful sound, the oboe will quite often have long solo passages. And because there are usually only 2-3 players in a band, even when there is not a solo, the oboe section will have an exposed sound on their own.
Oboe Reeds
Most oboe players will eventually learn from their teachers how to make reeds. Reed making is life-long learning experience by the increasing knowledge of how to get better results in quality and getting faster at assembly and finishing a reed. Until the time of learning how to make their own, a student usually will buy reeds from their teacher or sometimes have success finding adequate ones from a music store.
Famous Oboists:
Most of the famous oboe players in the U.S. can be traced back to the famous French oboist, Marcel Tabuteau, who was imported in 1905 to play in the New York Symphony Orchestra. His students became famous and held principal positions with most of the major city orchestras in the United States.
Some of these students include:
- John Mack
- John de Lancie
- Joseph Robinson
- Alfred Genovese
- Laila Storch and brothers: Ralph & Harold Gomberg.
- Many of these famous players in turn have taught the current generation of great oboists.
Oboe Repertoire
Solos for Oboe with Orchestra:
- Concerto by Mozart
- Concerto by Marcello
- Concerto by Vaughn-Williams
- Concerto by Haydn
- Concerto by Cimaroso
- Concertos by Vivaldi (many)
- Concertos by Albinoni (many)
Solos for Oboe with Piano:
- Sonate by Saint-Saens
- Sonata by Poulenc
- Three Romances by Schumann
- Sonata by Hindemith
Oboe Videos
There are many excellent videos and recordings on the Internet. Here are some examples:
Eugene Izotov playing 2nd Movement of Marcello’s Concerto for Oboe
Hugh Downs interview on “Why Would Anyone Want to Play the Oboe?”