Earl Groth teaches the oboe at the University of Florida at Gainesville, where he is a member of the Florida Baroque Ensemble. He is a graduate of the Eastman School of Music and Indiana University, and was formerly on the faculty at Indiana and the Crane School of Music of the SUNY at Potsdam.
The Baroque period is one of the greatest periods of art in the history of the world. When we compare its temper to the preceding great period, the Renaissance, we can see that the latter was essentially sagacious, sensible, and sophisticated in its manifestations. The Baroque is irrational, frivolous, governed by its own laws, and presenting innate and independent values. The Renaissance was strongly influenced by the grace, form, splendor, and order that accompanied classical antiquity. These qualities did not hold the same strong influences over the Baroque.
The Renaissance ideal was that of group performance and group sound. Musical instruments were assigned the role of choral accompaniment or contributed to the festive atmosphere of outdoor pageantry. With the Baroque period a complete realignment of musical instruments takes place. The dramma per musica ushers in a new concept of music-making and focuses attention on the solo voice and solo artist. Instruments, long accustomed to accompaniment of choral ensemble, begin to acquire these same solo characteristics. Many instrumental types are found ill-suited and so are discarded. Those that remain have an acceptable indoor sound that can be accurately controlled in pitch and dynamics and have the flexible personal attributes of the human voice. Of the woodwinds only the recorders and bassoons can pass the test without drastic modification. The great family of woodwinds played with double-reeds and collectively referred to as shawms start their gradual descent into almost total oblivion.
The beginning of the Baroque in Germany knew such types as Sordune, Schryari, Kartholt, Bassanelli and Krummhorns. (1) By the middle-Baroque all had disappeared with the exception of a large family of double-reeds called Pommer, including instruments in all sizes, from the sopranino (Praetorius' Klein Schalmey -- about eighteen inches long) to the double-bass (Gross-Bass-Pommer -- a grotesque ten feet in length). (2)
As the century continues the names Pommer and Schalmei are superseded by the one the instrument has since retained. In France, where they are extensively used, the smaller members of the family are called Haulx bois or hautbois, and the larger members are called gros bois. This distinction gains general acceptance, and thus the hautbois of France becomes the oboe of Germany, the Hautboy or Hoboy of England and the oboe of Italy. The Alto Pommer and Bass Pommer become the oboe d'amore and bassoon of the Baroque sacred ensemble.
Present terminology regarding the classification of the double-reed family is anything but consistent. Modern orchestration manuals often refer to the English horn as an alto oboe where in actuality they are two distinctly separate instruments.
Terry gives the name oboe III or oboe da caccia to the taille assigned to augment the soprano oboe section in Bach's festive cantatas. (3) Schmeider, in his Thematisch-systematisches Verzeichnis der Werke Johann Sebastian Bachs, and probably to help solve the problem for modern performances, makes the term taille synonymous with oboe da caccia.(4) Yet the taille, as known in the Baroque, is neither oboe or oboe da caccia, but a distinct instrument with its own separate characteristics.
The term "oboe" has come to mean a number of things. It may mean, first of all, any conoidal bore double reed instrument which, as seen in the chart to follow, gives us a wide variety of instrumental forms.
Tonal Name Tonality
Position
Sopranino 1. Oboe (Military) E-flat
2. Piccolo Heckelphone F
3. Terz-Heckelphone E-flat
4. Sarrousophone E-flat
Soprano 1. Discant Shawm C
2. Oboe (Band) D-flat
3. Oboe C
4. Oboe (Band) B-flat
5. Sarrusophone B-flat
Mezzo- 1. Oboe Basso A
Soprano 2. Oboe d'amore A
3. Discant Fagott A
Alto 1. Small Alto Shawm G
2. Large Alto Shawm F
3. Discant Fagott G
4. Alto Oboe F
5. Oboe da caccia F
6. Taille F
7. English Horn F
8. Sarrusophone E-flat
(Tenor) 1. Tenor Shawm C
2. Baritone Oboe C
3. Hautbois baryton C
4. Heckelphone C
5. Fagottino C
6. Tenor Sarrusophone C
Bass 1. Basset Shawm G
2. Bass Oboe F
3. Single Curtal G
4. Tenoroon F
5. Baritone Sarrusophone E-flat
Contrabass 1. Bass Shawm (Bombardo) C
2. Bassoon C
3. Bass Sarrusophone B-flat
Sub bass 1. Great Bass Shawm GG
(Bombardone)
2. Quart Fagott GG
3. Quint Fagott FF
4. Contrabass
Sarrusophone BBB-flat
"Oboe" may, secondly, refer to the heterogeneous family of oboes listed in instrumentation books. Usually this consists of oboe, oboe d'amore, and English horn; but it may also include the bassoon and double bassoon.
Third, "oboe" can refer to the whole family of real oboes of which only the soprano has survived. The specific, narrow family of true oboes includes:
Tonal
Position Name Tonality
Sopranino 1. Oboe (Military) E-flat
Soprano 1. Oboe (Band) D-flat
2. Oboe C
3. Oboe (Band) B-flat
Mezzo- 1. Oboe basso A
Soprano
Alto 1. Alto Oboe F
Baritone 1. Baritone Oboe C
Bass 1. Bass Oboe F
Instruments such as the English horn are often assigned the role of the low real oboes in modern performances of Baroque scores, although they possess neither structural nor tonal similarity.
Lastly, "oboe" can become a convenient term to relate to a defined group of heterogeneous instruments selected for a specific purpose. Such is the case in this study. The "oboe," as used in the title of this investigation, includes those forms uncovered as being employed in the period under consideration. In this sense, for convenience, and only as related to this study, "oboe" will include (1) Oboe in C, (2) Oboe in B-flat,(3) Oboe basso in A, (4) Oboe d'amore, (5) Oboe da caccia, and (6) Taille.
The Oboe in C, Oboe in B-flat, and Oboe basso in A are members of the true oboe family and are characterized by three part construction: bell, lower joint, and upper joint. The joints are drilled with a seven hole scale in the key of the instrument. The range is approximately two octaves, depending on the skill of the performer. The first hole above the middle joint and the first hole below the middle joint are drilled double. The lower joint includes the "great key," an open-standing articulated key covering the lowest note-hole. It is built in a swallow-tail shape originally designed to accommodate either hand, and preserved on later instruments probably to improve the symmetrical appearance. The lower joint also includes the "less keys," duplicated closed keys giving E-flat when opened, and situated one on either side of the great key. Again, in certain later forms of the Baroque oboe, the left side key is a dummy key probably retained to balance the appearance of the instrument. The bell is built with two open holes in the waist. The reed is mounted in the top of the oboe on a metal tube or staple.
The top of the upper joint shows a funnel-shaped expansion which is probably a remnant of the detachable pirouette of the shawm. (6) This swelling, along with the others in the body of the instrument, probably grew to serve the more important function of reinforcing the bore at the top from the contraction and expansion of breath moisture and, in the center and bell, for the purpose of strengthening the tenon joint.
The heavy ring of wood under and to the top of the: swallow-tail key supports the pivot pins of the two side keys. The lower ring of heavy wood supports the lower portion of the articulated C key (great key). The top part of this swallow-tail key is supported by a small flat spring mounted directly to the tube of the oboe. Keys are often square in the German oboe and are usually constructed of sheet metal, usually silver. The bell has two permanently open sound holes which aid in tuning and release of the lowest fingered notes.
Instruments of the type just described are readily seen in various instrument collections in this country and, very recently, in modern reconstructions for the purpose of authentic performance.
The Oboe basso was employed by Baroque composers when the range, but not the quality, of the oboe d'amore was desired. The Baroque composer most often calls it simply "oboe" in the score and its presence must be determined by examination of the range and key of the oboe part.
The oboe d'amore is a mezzo-soprano instrument pitched in A with a hollow globular pear shaped bell (liebesfuss) much like that on the modern English Horn. Its natural scale is that of B major and it is used almost exclusively in sharp keys. The name of the instrument probably refers to the sound it produces--tender, gentle, and generally more refined than the other members of the double-reed family.
Bach displays a fondness for the instrument and most often combines it with subjective, personal, devout texts expressing intimate fervent faith or deep spiritual adoration. It is rarely used in chorales or choruses that would conflict with its intimate nature.
The composers of the period write for it in two ways: sometimes actual notes to be sounded are notated; at other times it is treated as a transposing instrument written a minor third higher than it sounds.
The origin of the oboe d'amore is unknown. It came into existence about the year 1720 and the earliest use seems to be Bach's cantata No. 37, Wer da glaubet (1725)
In its early form the oboe da caccia is frequently considered a discant fagott pitched a fourth higher, rather than an oboe pitched a fifth lower. In this early type it is a straight tube with an expanding bell and tends to resemble the former, rather than the latter instrument. Bach shows an inclination to think of it as some form of a bassoon, occasionally assigning it to the role of a continuo instrument, as seen in this example of the complete instrumentation of an alto aria from Cantata No. 46. (7)
By Bach's time the oboe da caccia has assumed the bent or curved shape which we associate with the instrument. The bend (to reduce over-all length) is achieved by introducing a knuckle or "knee" joint between the upper and lower sections, which remained straight as before. This form is generally unsatisfactory as it is structurally weak and hard to bore.
The instrument often occurs in the shape of a half-circle. For this graduated tube, two longitudinal halves, each carrying a semicircular groove which forms the bore, are united. The tubes are usually covered with leather to form an air-tight passage. Fingerholes are drilled along the line of the glued joint on the outer curve. This shape eliminated the need for a reed crook of the type used on the modern English Horn.
From these forms comes the name cor angle', "angled horn," which was later corrupted to cor anglais, "English Horn," and applied to the straight instrument of a later generation.
The taille is an oboe of simple construction. It is jointed in the center and is built like the regular oboe but with the removable bell joint missing. All of the finger holes are single drilled and the instrument possesses two brass keys. The bottom of the tube has a slight flare and the full length of the instrument is used for the lowest note. Its usual function is one of general utility, most often to fill out three or four part harmony of the double-reed choir. This particular instrument underwent numerous changes of form and nomenclature. This instability seems to indicate both a demand for the instrument and a dissatisfaction with the forms as they existed. It is curious that the earlier forms of this instrument possessed the usual features of the oboe, including the divided third and fourth finger holes and the duplicate E-flat keys. Early models also have two permanently open "sound holes" in the waist of the bell. These features disappear in the later simple form already described.
The taille is a group instrument of the Baroque sacred double-reed choir whose function never exceeds that of contributing to oboe group sonority. Modern attempts to assign exotic description to the tone and function of the taille appear inconsistent with the intent of the Baroque composer, whose simple job is to seek a double-reed instrument with the requisite sonority to play the middle parts of double-reed choirs - nothing more.
Investigation has revealed no detailed account of the function of the bulb-bell in the oboe d 'amore, oboe da caccia and forms of the taille. It is interesting to note that musicologists deal with it in considerable detail without truly revealing the function or purpose. There seems to be a tendency to credit the bulb-bell with the powers of an auxiliary resonator, capable of enhancing both the power and the quality of the tone. Many commentators feel that the peculiar nasal quality of these instruments is the result of the bell.
Eric Halfpenny relates an experiment on the taille where a straight bell was substituted for a bulb-bell and reports a changed character of tone, loss of sonority and the impression of having to work harder. His provisional conclusion is that the bell does tend to act as a free auxiliary resonator, improving power and quality. (8)
Personal experience on the contemporary English Horn, which also possesses a bulb-bell, indicates that only very subtle change in color or quality occur with removal or change of bell. The bulb-bell is certainly considered with care in the construction of a modern instrument because quality and tuning have become musically important to us. It is doubted that such small changes would have been important in an age accustomed to, and expecting, considerably more virility in the tone of its double-reed instruments.
The probable origin of the bulb-bell is in the perforated bell sections of the early shawm. The spheroidal version of the early bells, drilled with numerous holes, serves a well-understood function in the early Baroque. The purpose is to reduce the general length and weight of the instrument while still achieving a generally good control of pitch and tone.
Oboe instruction books containing valuable descriptions - of performance practice and techniques begin to appear at the end of the seventeenth century. The oboe seems to be the first of the modern woodwinds to receive a systematized technique. The English are the first to document the musical practices of the oboe and display considerable interest in woodwind performance. This writer uncovered no similar occurrence on the Continent in general, or in Germany. The differences between the Continental and English oboe are so slight that an examination of the English tutors will profit this discussion. Eric Halfpenny reports on a number of late seventeenth century tutors recently examined in the British Museum. (9) The three of these that have been quoted in sections to follow are:
The Sprightly Companion being a Collection of the best Foreign Marches . . . with two Farewells at the Funeral of the late Queen (as above), also Plain and Easy Directions for playing on the Hautboy, with first of this kind publishe'd.
This is a tutor published by one Henry Playford and is dated July, 1695.
The Second Book of Theatre Musick containing . . . All the New French Dances . . . Ayres, Song-Tunes and Dances . . . All of them being proper to play on Ye HAUTBOY, A Scale is added at ye End of ye Book for such as desire to Practice on that instrument.
The Second Book dates from four years later, 1699, and is the work of John Walsh. The third method, published about the year 1725 by Longman, Lukey and Company and later by Longman and Broderip, becomes the standard oboe tutor until the two-keyed instrument becomes obsolete - about the time of Beethoven. It is a valuable work with regard to performance practice as J. C. Fischer, a celebrated eighteenth-century oboist, supervised the publication. This work, the New and Complete Instructions contains the following address To Young Practitioners:
. . . The Improvements made of late Years, were never before published; and the former Editions of most Introductions are defective in Scale and deficient in Direction. By perswasion and frequent Solicitations of the most eminent Performers etc. we are induced and determined to - spare no pains for expence in the completion of a good and just Introduction. L. L.
Modern descriptions of the tone of the early oboe are subject to as much confusion as is the classification of the instruments. William D. Denny, writing in the Harvard Dictionary, makes a statement typical of the modern concept of Baroque oboe tone:
It should be noted that the oboes of the 18th and early 19th centuries were much more strident and piercing in sound than the modern instruments, a statement which is even more true of the still earlier instruments. (10)
Mr. Denny's statement may certainly be true of the very early forms. Praetorius is reported as saying that the soprano Schalmey sounded like the screeching of geese! (11)
Another early commentator, Mersenne, makes the following report on oboe tone:
As to their music, it is suitable for large ensemble, such as the Ballet, although the violins are now used in their place, for weddings, for village festivals, and for other public celebrations, because of the great noise that they make and the great harmony that they render, for they have the strongest and most violent tone of all the instruments, except for the trumpet. (12)
Mersenne's statement is often quoted as applying to the Baroque oboe. This is hardly possible since the oboe in the Baroque form was not developed or tentatively tried out in the orchestra until twenty years later.
The tone of the oboe in the century of Bach and Handel certainly is essentially different from that of the oboe as we know it. The modern American concept of oboe playing is to produce a refined, dark, and somewhat thin sound. By contrast, the Baroque tone is probably fuller and broader. The present German oboe tone, rarely emulated in this country, still retains characteristics of the tone of the old instruments and is, accordingly, less agreeable to our ears, accustomed to a different, though not necessarily superior, quality.
Unfortunately many researchers, in attempting performance on the Baroque instruments, synthesize modern sounds on obsolete materials. The instrument and reed must direct the player to its own inherent sound. The prejudice of prior training and modern tradition are the greatest barrier to objective evaluation of historic practices.
The historic tutors already mentioned contribute valuable evidence in support of the beautiful quality of the Baroque oboe tone. In the Sprightly Companion we find:
All that play upon this Instrument to a reasonable perfection know, that with a good Reed it goes as easie and as soft as the Flute... Besides its Inimitable charming Sweetness of Sound (when well play'd upon) it is also Majestical and Stately, and not much Inferiour to the Trumpet; and for that reason the greatest Heroes of the Age (who sometimes despise the Strung-Instruments) are infinately pleased with This for its brave and sprightly Tone. (13)
The New and Complete Instructions reports:
The Hoboy played well, has a delicacy superior to any Wind instrument now in use; and when blown and fingered by a skilful Performer, you have the sweetness of tone, the tine Swell, the pleasing grace, and every other beauty necessary to charm the Mind and delight the Ear; This Instrument at present seems too well known, to expitiate much on its utility; let it suffice 'tis the sweetness of Martial music, the life of a Band, a fine accompaniment to the Voice, and excellent in Solos and Duets . . .
The right Tone of the Hoboy should be even and clear, from the lowest Note to the highest, and not unlike the fine Tone produced by the ablest Bow from the Violin; avoid all speaking (sic?) or extream blowing as that is very disagreeable. In stopping the Holes of the Hoboy, the Fingers should be pressed hard on, for if the Holes are not close stopt, it's very hurtful to the Tone. To soften the sound of the Hoboy put some Cotton or Wool up the Bell of your Hoboy, but be careful not to put it up higher than the air Hole. For if you do, it looses its effect: this Invention was made known in England by the Famous Player, C. (?) C. Fischer. (14)
The supposed coarseness of tone in the Baroque oboe is often stated as being a result of the type of reed employed.
At that time the reeds used were much broader than those of the present day, the result being that the tone, instead of being, as now, like a silver thread in the orchestra, was fuller and more nasal, not unlike the musettes that are to be heard sometimes in the streets, associated with the Tyrolese bagpipes. (15)
Josef Marx, long interested in the Baroque oboe and a successful performer on the instrument emphatically states:
...,belief that the old instrument sounded coarse and crude (is) utterly false . . . The thick fish-tail reed with a thin-walled, light-wood oboe would give it a mellow and gentle tone since it did not have to overcome the tremendous inertia and resistance which the heavy hard-wood oboe of today offers the reed. (16)
Personal experience with the construction of double-reeds has clearly shown that it is virtually impossible to tell what a reed will sound like by looking at it. The shape of the reed does not seem to influence quality as much as it affects the production of overtones. A wide reed on the modern oboe results in a flat and limited upper range. A similar effect is probably noted in the Baroque instrument although balanced to some extent by the decreased resistance due to the lightness of the wood. What is more important is that, in cutting down the upper partials, the tone is rounded and softened. The Baroque oboe appears to be esteemed for this particular quality.
Modern reed-makers for the Baroque oboe must reckon with marginal intonation of the early oboe and carefully plan the range of variable to finally achieve both: tuning and the distinctive tone quality that is one of the essentials of historically correct performance.
On a good reed greatly depends the ease of Playing, blowing in tune, and sweetness of Tone. Before you put the Reed in your Hautboy, you should spit thro' it, or wet it, as it will be easier and better Tone than when dry, and when you chuse a Reed, you must blow thro' it without pressing your Lips, and if it crows free, you are certain 'tis a good one. When you put your Reed in the Hautboy, you should be carefull not to put it in too far, as it will be difficult to blow and probable be out of Tune; if the end of the Reed is too small, to prevent it's going too far into the Hautboy, put some Thread round it. (17)
A good reed is the most valuable asset in modern performance. It appears to have been no less important in the Baroque period. Sir John Hawkins reports that:
About the year 1735 an advertisement appeared in the public papers, offering a reward of ten guineas for a haut-boy reed that had been lost. It was conjectured to be Martini's, and favored the opinion that he had some secret in preparing or meliorating the reeds of his instrument, though none could account for the offer of a reward so greatly disproportionable to the utmost conceivable value of the thing lost. It seems that the reed was found, and brought to the owner, but in such a condition as to render it useless.(18)
The scoring techniques in the Baroque sacred ensemble require the oboe to participate a large percentage of the actual playing time. The oboist, because of the muscle tension involved in tone production, is subject to the fatigue factor more than any other woodwind player.
The oboe embouchure involves a very restricted muscle area. Both lips are involved in the control of the reed but the teeth cannot contribute greatly to support. In modern playing, prolonged passages cause fatigue, which, in turn, causes the player to pinch for support. The effects can be heard in terms of rising pitch, thin tone quality, lack of dynamic gradations, and poor attacks. A similar problem must have faced the Baroque oboist.
Something can be learned about Baroque practice from this entry in the New and Complete Instructions:
Apply the Reed fixed in the Instrument to your mouth, and as you put the Reed within your Lips you should force in with it the under part of your top lip, by which method you will have more power over the Reed, for the Lip is apt to tire, which disables you from blowing in tune. Observe, also, that the low and high notes are governed by the action of the Lip. The low Notes require little or no pressure on the Reed, but when you ascend from middle D, as you will observe in the Scale, you must increase your pressure gradually: Practice will better inform you than the ablest Pen can describe.(19)
The breathing problem is another great factor contributing to the fatigue of the modern performer. The player is forced to retain a large supply of air in his lungs for long periods of time. Because the reed allows only a very small amount of air to be released from the lungs, the remaining supply of deoxygenated air causes great discomfort to the player. Lack of oxygen causes tenseness in all mechanical functions. It may be assumed that the larger reed used in the Baroque period would allow a correspondingly larger amount of air to flow into the oboe, thus somewhat alleviating the problem of deoxygenation. However, another problem, one that no modern player would countenance, confronts the Baroque performer. The old oboe is not provided with an octave-key mechanism and all register changes must be made with the lips and breath alone. The Second Book of Theatre Music reports the procedure as follows:
Observe where you see this mark (n) over the heads of the Notes in the Scale which begins a D-la-sol-re and so on all the notes in alt you must press the reed almost close between your lips and blow stronger than you did before and if higher you goe still continue blowing somewhat stronger . . . Thus all the Holes of your Pipe being stopt, blow somewhat strong and you will distinctly hear C fa cut, which is the lowest Note on the Hautboy . . . for D sol re or the ninth Note, stop all your Fingers, only keeping your little finger off from the Brass key: then press the Reed between your lips almost close together and blow stronger than you did before: whereupon you will hear a sound the compass of a Note above the former, but is ought to be observed that in all the following Notes which . . . are above this C fa ut, the Reed must be kept pressed between your lips as you did for the receeding note, and the higher you go, still continue blowing somewhat stronger.(20)
The Sprightly Companion comments:
. . . Some Men, I must confess, endeavor to Decry the Hautboy, pretending the Learners must blow so hard, that it is apt to bloat their Faces, and prejudice their Lungs: But this is a meer Mistake, as will be found on Experience. (21)
Breathing, then as now, had a direct effect on intonation. Also, lacking precision tools, no two instruments are made the same in all respects. This creates intonation deficiencies that would not be tolerated by a modern performer. The player alone was responsible for approximating good intonation. The New and Complete Instructions advise the young player:
In raising and falling the Octaves, the young Beginner will be apt to imagine (let his Hautboy be ever so perfect) that the low D is to flat and out of Tune, which in fact will be the case, if he does not endeavour to remedy that defect by blowing the low Notes strong and full, and the middle A soft. The forgoing Rule observed with attentive Ear will be of great utility to all Learners, and another Remark also should be adhered to: That is, should he give the Pitch of his Instrument in Concert, the middle A as before noted, must be blown very soft, for unless that method is observed he will be much deceived in it, all his low Notes will be too Flat, the D in particular . . . to blow in Tune depends entirely on the Ear, and a good Ear improv'd by practice is preferable to all Rules of Directions that can be laid down. (22)
The modern professional oboe is a full "conservatory' system with plateaux keys and numerous key improvements compared to early models already described. A complete modern instrument will include a left hand F key, an F resonance key, and finger extension plates to make the hand position more comfortable. Oboes can also include a left hand C key, a left hand C# key, a third octave key for third-partial notes, and any other device the performer may choose. In spite of all of the improvements in mechanism, there exist passages in Baroque sacred music that are virtually impossible to execute with ease. It is remarkable that the player of the eighteenth century could begin to accomplish musical results with seven holes and two brass keys!
To assist the early player in the fingering of half-steps, the third and fourth finger holes are double-drilled. Instead of a full sized hole, two small ones placed side by side are used in each case, one or both of which could be covered by the finger. The arrangement is similar to that found on the modern English-fingered recorder. The two keys giving C' and E-flat' are well established by the beginning of the eighteenth century. In 1727 Gerard Hofmann of Rastenburg add two keys for G# and A#. (23) It is doubtful that the composers considered later in this study were aware of this improvement.
Certain notes on the Baroque oboe are virtually impossible to obtain. Most difficult is the low C# which is sounded by partially depressing the swallow-tailed C key and shading the D hole to flatten it. This is a very insecure note and composers, as we will determine later in this study, avoid use of this tone. Johann Quantz is credited with the addition of a long key for this C#. The new key limits the use of fork fingering and restricts use of this one C# fingering. It is never generally accepted.
As already mentioned, no two oboes were constructed alike. This meant that:
Every Hautboy will not admit of being Fingered alike, for which reason as under you'll see a different way of stopping some particular Notes from those on the Scale, some passages one way will be most handy, in other passages the other way according what you execute. (24)
It is interesting to note that while the Baroque oboe is physically constructed to be playable with either hand on either joint of the instrument, fingering charts make no mention of any variation from the custom now in force of left hand on the top joint. The Complete Instructions advise the new player as follows:
First observe the manner of holding your Hautboy which is thus, place your hand uppermost next to your mouth and your right hand below: though there are eight holes on this instrument besides the two under the Brass Keys making ten in all, nevertheless seven fingers will be sufficient to supply them, as for Example--Let the forefinger of your left hand cover the first hole, the second finger the second and the third finger the next two holes. In like manner the forefinger of your right hand must stop the next two holes, then place the second finger of the same hand on the next hole together with the third finger on the lowest hole in view and your little finger will command the biggest brass key, so that be setting it down pretty hard it will cover the lowest hole. (25)
The fingering chart which follows is constructed from the various tables found in the method books already quoted and from the reported researches of other investigators. It is designed to provide a complete fingering and trill tabulature enabling the performer to select a fingering that will provide the best intonation for the instrument he is playing. The order of fingerings does not, therefore, indicate preference of fingerings.
The chart reveals the interesting fact that no fingering differences exist between half-step and whole-step trills. We might speculate that the player was required to compensate for the pitch difference with subtle, difficult finger and embouchure adjustments or assume that the musical result of an identical fingering for a different interval was aesthetically satisfactory.
When a composer of our age chooses to write for a wind instrument he must, first of all, come to understand the possibilities and limitations of the chosen instrument. The instrument influences the approach to composition. Likewise, it is the instrument that dictates the style of Baroque sacred performance.
The modern artist-performer of Baroque sacred music, using modern instruments, can utilize the full dimension of his technical and mechanical resources and achieve a smooth, soaring, singing line in the best Romantic tradition. This approach is stylistically and mechanically out of the question when performing on the oboe of that period. Examination of the fingering chart for the Baroque oboe clearly shows that virtually every other note of the chromatic scale is a compromise. The various combinations of forked fingerings produce tones which are cloudy and dull in comparison to the clear notes of the natural scale. The eighteenth-century oboist is faced with a wide array of alternate fingerings which need to be quickly and carefully selected with reference to their use: the relation of the tone to the harmonic structure of the music influences the choice of a flatter or sharper fingering; a tone of sustained value needs to sound more clearly and more in tune than a note of short value; a note unadorned requires a different standard of selection than a tone trilled.
Notes requiring fewest fingers are also the dynamically weakest notes on the Baroque oboe. The player must carefully judge his overall dynamic level and relate volume to the weakest note so that the muffled tone of the problem notes will not diverge too much from the rest of the passage. The player must continually overplay the weak, dull tones and cover the bright sounds.
This step-by-step selection and the resultant unevenness of tone causes a style of performance with an unavoidable slightly altered rhythm. Ornaments abound and, possibly, grow partly out of a practical need to hide this rhythmical problem.
With these factors in mind we are led to assume that Baroque sacred performance is probably governed by generally shorter phrase concepts, and by more distinct alternations between accented and unaccented beats to offset the natural, unwanted accentuation. This intentional accented-unaccented-- or long-short -- manner of playing was recognized in the Baroque period and actually cultivated. Johann Quantz writes:
I must in this connection make a necessary remark concerning the length of time each note must be held . . . (the notes) must . . .be played a little unevenly . . . This holding (of the good notes) must not amount to as much as it would if there were dots after the notes . . . The first and third (notes are to be) held somewhat longer.
One must know how to distinguish in performance between principal notes, also called "initial" or in Italian usage good notes, on the one hand, and, on the other, "passing" notes, called by some foreigners bad notes . . . The principal notes must wherever possible be brought out more than the passing ones . . . When there is a slur over more than two notes . . . (they) must be played even.
The fastest notes . . . despite the fact that they have in appearance the same value, must nevertheless be played a little unevenly . . . By the fastest notes, I mean: quarters in 3/2; eights in 3/4 and sixteenths or thirty-seconds in 2/4 or C; but only so long as no groups of notes twice as fast or once again as short are intermingled in whatever meter, for then these last named would have to be performed in the manner described above. (26)
The instructions remind one of a modern description of swing or jazz playing. It indicates that the Baroque performer may enjoy a freedom of rhythmic expression well beyond the restricted rhythmic interpretation of the modern player.
Another area related to phrasing of Baroque sacred literature is that of expression. One must certainly admit to the presence of Baroque musical compositions allowing fullest interpretive possibilities. So far as intrinsic expression is concerned, Baroque music is as much a language of emotion as is the music of any other period. Just how much extrinsic expression is applied to music making extensive use of the more intellectual means of symbolism for conveying emotion is hard to determine. Very likely the need for extrinsic expression of emotion is no different psychologically then than now. Certainly the belief that music is an emotional response and that its essence is self-expression is old and widespread. However, the music of the Baroque shows a tendency toward less of self-expression and more of integrated, disciplined and articulated forms. Musical symbolism functions as denotative and connotative rather than emotional. Yet, some two hundred years later, we seek and find self-expression in playing this selfsame music. We can use this music to work off our subjective experience and restore our personal balance even though this may not be its primary function. One may reason that our modern awareness and regard for Baroque intellectual musical symbolism actually contributes rather than detracts from our emotional response.
If music has any significance, it is semantic, not symptomatic... its "meaning" is evidently not that of a stimulus to evoke emotions, nor that of a signal to announce them; if it has an emotional content, it "has" it in the same sense that language "has" its conceptual content - symbolically. (27)
Thus, while the Baroque means for the expression of emotion appear to be psychologically no different from those of our own age, they do differ musically. Style-critical comparison must always determine how.
(1) Willi Apel. Harvard Dictionary of Music (Cambridge: Harvard University Press, 1955), p. 502.
(2) Michael Praetorius. Syntagma Musicum (Wittenberg 1614/15, facsimile, Kassel: Barenreiter, 1959), Vol. 1, Plate Xl.
(3) C. S. Terry. Bach's Orchestra (London: Oxford University Press, 1932), Table X, p. 213 and Table XI, p. 218.
(4) Wolfgang Schmieder, Thematisch systematisches Verzeichnis der Werke Johann Sebastian Bachs (Leipzig: Breitkopf und Hartel 961),see Bezetzung, Cantata l9,p. 23.
(5) Nicholas Bessaraboff, Ancient European Musical Instruments (Cambridge: Harvard University Press, 1941), p. 111.
(6) Adam Carse, Musical Wind Instruments (London: MacMillan, 1939), description of the shawm and pirouette are found on page 132.
(7) BGA Vol. X, p. 230.
(8) Eric Halfpenny, 'The Tenner Hoboy,' The Galpin Society Journal, V (March, 1952), pp. 17-27.
(9) Eric Halfpenny, "The French Hautboy: A Technical Survey Part I," The Galpin Society Journal, Xl (July, 1953), pp. 23-24.
(10) Apel, Harvard Dictionary of Music, p. 501.
(11) Joseph Marx, "The Tone of the Baroque Oboe," The Galpin Society Journal, IV (June, 1951), p. 5.
(12) Marin Mersenne, 'The Books on Instruments,' Harmonie Universelle Translator: Roger E. Chapman (The Hague: Marinus Nijhoff, 1957)
(13) Halfpenny, "The French Hautboy," op. cit., p. 30.
(14) Ibid., p. 32
(15) Ebenezer Prout, "Technique of the Instruments," The Orchestra. (London: Augener and Co 1897), p. 11 4.
(16) Josef Marx, "Preliminary Report on the Baroque Oboe," Woodwind Magazine, Vll, No. 5 (January, 1955), p. 9.
(17) Halfpenny, op. cit., p. 33 (New and Complete Instructions).
(18) Sir John Hawkins, A General History of the Science and Practice of Music (London: Novello 1875), 11, p. 895.
(19) Halfpenny, op. cit., p. 29.
(20) Ibid., p. 29.
(21) Ibid. p. 28.
(22) Ibid., p. 30
(23) Grove, Dictionary of Music and Musicians (New York: St. Martin's Press, Inc., 1955), III, p. 624.
(24) Halfpenny,op. cit., p. 30. A..
(25) Ibid., p. 28.
(26) Arthur Mendel, Passion According to St John, (New York: G. Schirmer, Inc.), p. xii and Xiii.
(27) Susan Langer, Philosophy in a New Key (New York: Mentor Books, 1961), p. 185.