This greeting is being used with some nostalgia after five years. We hope you, our readers, will share our enthusiasm for this new format which is being introduced with this issue. Its many advantages are obvious--four yearly mailings instead of seven (with significant postage savings) and elimination of duplication of messages to the whole Society membership.
A great many events of importance have occurred since my last editor's message. A new slate of officers elected in Evansville has set the Society on an innovative and more purposeful track; this publication is only one evidence of it.
Personally this year has had many high points. I so enjoyed a visit with Laila Storch in Evansville -- all too short -- where I discovered that her personal charm equals her skills with the Loree and the typewriter; her Gillet article in the 1977 Journal has brought more positive response than any other Society publication. It was an equally great pleasure to hear John de Lancie's aristocratic playing once again in Philadelphia-- this time in February when he premiered David Amram's Trail of Beauty and than an added bonus: to hear two Philadelphia Orchestra concerts here on the Michigan State campus in May, probably my last opportunity to hear this great artist in the orchestra, and to visit with him in the more relaxed atmosphere of East Lansing. It was also illuminating for me to have Steve Hewitt explain some of the intricacies of his Method to me in person--he has enough imagination for two people! The Cleveland Orchestra also visited East Lansing in May, and John Mack fortunately had time to spend a few hours with my pupils; it was a pleasure to hear this wonderful player in the orchestra, and to marvel again at this great orchestra's woodwind section, as they displayed their uncanny intonation in symphonies of Dvorak and Prokofiev.
The summer was again spent at Interlochen, that perfect blend of beautiful natural setting with extraordinary young talent. I participated in performances of the Haydn Sinfonia Concertante, a Zelenka Sonata (with my colleague Laura Jaeger), and many others.
October brought a quick visit to New York for a reunion with Heinz Holliger, who was performing there with the marvelous St. Paul Chamber Orchestra, before touring Europe with them. Richard Killmer, the orchestra's first oboist, is an outstanding artist in his own right, and it was a pleasure to see--and hear -- him again. Holliger performed the Mozart concerto in the concert I heard, with incredible dexterity and control of fingers and tongue. Earlier that day the Alice Tully Hall resounded to beautiful performances of Mozart and Dvorak serenades by the Lincoln Center Chamber Players (Leonard Arner and Carolyn Pollak, oboists). I have never before heard a Mozart concerto "bring down the house," but the ovation following Holliger's stunning performance was almost unbelievable; I found myself recalling again and again Evelyn Barbirolli's characterization of this artist as "the Paganini of the oboe." The evening before he had performed the Hummel Introduction, Theme and Variations, and the Reicha Recitative and Rondo for English horn and Orchestra. Holliger still maintains the gentle manner and modest demeanor of a small-town Swiss schoolteacher, quite untouched by the world fame that has come to him in recent years. It was interesting to discuss his various recording projects --all the Vivaldi concerti with I Musici, a disc devoted to Telemann sonatas, and possibly a recording of the Haydn concerto. He also mentioned a recent premiere of a double concerto -- for oboe and harp -- by the Korean composer, Isang Yun -- "long and very difficult!"
English horn players will be pleased to know that the Reicha work (as edited by James Brown) had been published by McGinnis & Marx; also new and worthwhile in the M & M catalog is a Sonata a Tre, Opus VII, No. 6, by Alessandro Besozzi for two oboes and bassoon. This is the first installment in a projected series entitled "From the Repertory of Josef Marx." Avant-gardists will be interested in Charles Whittenberger's Iambi for two oboes, also published by McGinnis & Marx.
Two dealers in wind music who give personal and careful attention to their clients' needs are: Pam Stutzke at Arpeggio Music, PO Box 16187, San Francisco, California 941 16, and June Emerson Wind Music, Ampleforth, Yorkshire, England. Write to these ladies for their catalogs.
1977 saw the publication of Leon Goossens' book devoted to the oboe (written with Edwin Roxburgh) and published by Schirmer ($5.95 in soft covers), and the completion of Evelyn Rothwell's monumental work The Oboist's Companion, with the publication of its Volume III devoted to reeds (published by the Oxford University Press). These important works belong in the library of every oboist, and I wish time and space permitted a full review of them. We desperately need reviewers - occasional or regular--for books, records, and music. Please let us know if you are interested in this kind of participation in the work of these publications. We will also continue to welcome articles on every aspect of your work with the oboe; please continue to inform us of your performances, and of your ideas for the continued improvement of these publications.
I hope to see many of you in Los Angeles; meanwhile I'll look forward to hearing from you .
Daniel Stolper
Michigan State University Department of Music
East
Lansing, Michigan 48824