Introduction

Music has always been an important part of Italian identity, and is held in very high esteem.
Great composers such as Claudio Montiverdi, Antonio Vivaldi and Ottorino Respighi wrote
amazing works for instrumental groups, while the 3 great composers of the Romantic Period,
Guiseppe Verdi, Giacomo Puccini, and Gioacchino Rossini put out ground-breaking opera
after opera. With this huge focus on musical culture, it was inevitable that the unique distinct
piercing timbre of the oboe would secure a special place in Italian music. In this investigation
and report, I will be looking at the changes to the oboe as an instrument as well as the
changes in Italian music as a whole from the origins to the present. Then, I will analyse
various Italian oboe concerti to demonstrate exactly how these changes are shown in the
music, and compare and contrast these pieces with music from other parts of the world. This
is directly related to my recital, in which I play two concerti from different time periods (Oboe
Concerto in D Minor by Allesandro Marcello and Oboe Concerto in C Minor by Vincenzio
Bellini), and explain the differences in the two.

Development of the Oboe

The oboe originated in the Middle Ages as a shawm, an instrument made of a single piece of
wood with a double reed, no keys, and seven finger holes and a thumb hole. The bell of the
shawm terminated in a flared bell, like that of a trumpet. After some development, the shawm
first saw use in Europe in the 9th to 12th Century, and the name shawm was only coined in
English during the 14th Century. The timbre of the Medieval shawm is very bright, loud and
piercing; quite similar to that of a bagpipe. It is due to this that the shawm was commonly
used for outdoors ceremonies and performances [Music Track 1]. However, this instrument
would be continuously developed until the Renaissance Period, in which it would have
changed enough to warrant it a new name.
The Renaissance shawm is distinctly different from its Medieval counterpart in both
appearance and sound quality. Firstly, the shape of the shawm was changed to resemble a
larger-sized modern oboe with a bulge just above the bell. Additionally, the double reed that
was used to play the instrument was inserted into a metal mouthpiece similar to that of the
cor anglais; as opposed to being inserted directly into the wood like the Medieval shawm.
Additionally, the size of the bore itself was narrowed, and the fingerholes were made smaller.
This caused the Renaissance shawm to have a much more controlled and darker timbre
when compared to the Medieval shawm [Music Track 2]. Additionally, larger and smaller
variations of the shawm were made for different purposes, including the soprano, alto, tenor,
bass, and great bass. However, the larger instruments proved unwieldy and impractical; and
thus were very rarely seen. At this time, the shawm was still used almost exclusively for
outdoor music, with instruments possessing much softer timbres being preferred for indoor

playing. The shawm had a range of 2 octaves at this time; not so different from the modern
oboe in terms of range.
The development of what is commonly recognized as the first oboe began with a man
named Jean Hotteterre in France, commonly credited with the development of the oboe. The
bore was narrowed even further and the width of the reed was reduced; thus producing an
even more refined timbre. It was at this time the oboe was split into the 3 sections that are
present today; the top and bottom joints, and the bell. Additionally, keys were added to help
increase the range and chromatic abilities of the instrument. With these adjustments, the
Baroque Oboe, typically acknowledged as the first variation of oboe, was born. Towards the
end of the Baroque period, the oboe started to be manufactured with African Blackwood,
rather than the boxwood previously used for early oboes and shawms. The blackwood
absorbs more sound, and gives the Baroque oboe an even darker tone and mellow sound.
The new timbre of the oboe was more suited to indoor playing, being less blaring. However,
the piercing sound and unique tone contrasted the timbre of the predominantly-string
ensembles nicely, which led to the almost ubiquitous use of the oboe during the Baroque era
and beyond [Music Track 3]. At this point in time, the overall timbre and sound produced by
the Baroque oboe is already very similar to that of a modern oboe. An interesting fact to note
is that during the Baroque Period, there was no real tuning standard. Due to this, the whole
orchestra tuned to the oboe, which was an instrument with a very stable pitch as well as a
piercing, easily-detectable sound. However, A=430Hz is commonly accepted as the most
comfortable range that the Baroque oboe can play on, and was likely to have been the most
common tuning note in the Baroque period. The range of the Baroque oboe was relatively
unchanged, but the addition of 2-3 keys allowed the instrument to perform much more
technically demanding actions, and composers such as Vivaldi used the improved chromatic
ability of the oboe to its full extent.
The two keyed oboe had great tonal flexibility but
limited technique in chromatic passages or in keys
remote from C. Robert Howe
Despite this fact, the Baroque oboe was still rather limited in regards to technical ability due
to its lack of keys. The instrument lacked a C#1 note; there was no octave key on this oboe,
and many fingerings were flawed in the regard that they were difficult to keep in tune. This
essentially meant the instrument had trouble playing in keys with many sharps or flats, and in
fact was practically impossible to play past E Major. For example, the C#1 was non-existent
and the C#2 was commonly flat; and the shift from C#2 to D#2 required the movement of the
pinkie of the right hand between two keys with no gap between the interval. The composers
that wrote for the oboe were well aware of this fact, and took it well into consideration. For
example, in all of Vivaldis oboe concertos, the only keys that are present are C, D, G, F, B-

flat Major, and A, D, and G Minor; none of which have more than two sharps or flat in the key
signature. However, at this time, the oboe damore had been developed; which could very
comfortable play in A or E Major. However, the tone of the oboe damore was monochromatic
and rather dull, which made it unfavourable for use in Italian music, and never made it to
Italy; dying out with Bach and Telemann in Germany.
During the classical period, more development was undertaken on the oboe, which mainly
consisted of narrowing the bore even further. Towards the early 19th Century, more keys were
beginning to be added, in a relatively arbitrary fashion according to the needs of composers
and players. Despite there being obvious benefits in adding keys (making the instrument
significantly easier to play), some professionals were against this idea, as it would essentially
make their years of practise obsolete. Regardless, the development of the oboe continued, a
project that was spearheaded in France.

Extra Music Tracks: Compare Vivaldis concerto in A Minor on Baroque and Modern Oboes.
[Music Track 4] Baroque Oboe
[Music Track 5] Modern Oboe. Note the abundance in ornamentation, and the brighter
texture.