Oboe Unbound

After decades of experimentation, musicians have begun to utilize a strikingly colorful palette of sounds on woodwind instruments. Flute, clarinet, and saxophone players both in jazz and in contemporary settings, regularly use sounds that were unheard of in the middle of the twentieth century.

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Oboists, forever obsessing over reeds and the demands of their finicky instrument, have lagged somewhat behind their more adventurous colleagues. This resource seeks to open up the tradition-bound assumptions of that instrument's capabilities. Not only does it include descriptions of the instrument's standard technique (such as range, reeds, and use of vibrato); but it provides a discussion of the many techniques that have recently been utilized (such as multiphonics, microtones, altered timbres, extended range, and many others) along with numerous musical examples and hundreds of fingerings. The fingering charts are extremely reliable, having been tested by a range of oboists with varying reed styles and instruments. A concluding chapter provides basic information about the use of electronics for amplification, recording, and sound enhancement. The book's appendices include a substantial bibliography of music and literature, a discography including jazz, non-western, and art music recordings, and a CD with examples of all the contemporary sounds as well as two previously unreleased compositions. With its wide range of detailed information, is a thorough resource for oboists and composers, from beginners to professionals.