Oboe

Гобой

Audio: Oboe

The oboe is a double-reed woodwind with a characteristic nasal, “Eastern” timbre. It is to the oboe that the orchestra tunes its A.

The oboe (from French hautbois — “high wood”) is the most penetrating of the woodwinds. Its sound is unmistakable: warm, slightly melancholy, with a vivid singing intonation. Composers therefore entrust the oboe with principal lyrical themes.

Famous solos: the lyric solo in Brahms's Second Symphony, the pastoral in Debussy's Pelléas et Mélisande, the main theme of Richard Strauss's Oboe Concerto. Why does the oboe set the orchestra's A? Its pitch is the most stable, and its timbre cuts cleanly across the whole ensemble. Distinguished oboists include Heinz Holliger, Albrecht Mayer; Ukrainian oboe schools are actively developing in Kyiv and Lviv.

Cultural Versus

Oboe

Sub-category:: woodwinds

The oboe is a double-reed woodwind with a characteristic nasal, “Eastern” timbre. It is to the oboe that the orchestra tunes its A.

50%similarity

Basolia

Sub-category:: strings

The basolia is a Ukrainian folk bowed string instrument of the bass register, similar in form and size to the cello. Held between the knees, it has 3–4 strings and provides the low bass voice in troïsta music.