Exam: HSC Oboe

Kingfisher Suite (3 pieces)

RM886e Kingfisher Suite (3 pieces) Morris OB/PNO
RM886e Kingfisher Suite (3 pieces) Morris OB/PNO
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Composer: Carolyn Morris
Composed: 2011 Duration: 5 mins.
Instrumentation: Oboe & Piano Level B, Oboe & Piano Level C
Exam Grade: HSC Oboe
ISMN: 979-0-720114-83-5 Catalogue: RM886
Level: B, C Country: Australia

Contents: Kingfishers, Forest Walk, Mountain Rain

Ulpirra

RM840e Ulpirra Edwards OB
RM840e Ulpirra Edwards OB
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Composer: Ross Edwards
Composed: 1993 Duration: 2 mins.
Instrumentation: Oboe Solo
Exam Grade: HSC Oboe
ISMN: 979-0-720109-94-7 Catalogue: RM840
Level: D Country: Australia

The Australian recorder player Jo Dudley commissioned this brief, virtuosic solo.

Ulpirra is an Aboriginal word meaning pipe or flute. It has been performed and recorded on many different treble instruments apart from the recorder: piccolo, flute, oboe, B-flat and E-flat clarinets, a special version for bass clarinet with handclapping accompaniment in Enyato IV, and soprano or alto saxophone.

Being short and snappy it is especially useful as an encore piece for recitals.

Steppin’ Up (8 pieces)

RM471e Steppin Up Barrett
RM471e Steppin Up Barrett
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Composer: John Barrett
Composed: 2006 Duration: 12 mins.
Instrumentation: Oboe & Piano Level A, Oboe & Piano Level B
Exam Grade: HSC Oboe
ISMN: 979-0-720083-19-3 Catalogue: RM471
Level: A - Easy, B Country: Australia

Contents: Herbie's Journey, Heaven's Steps, Dracula's New Shorts, Cha Cha Boom
I Wonder Why, Eat My Shorts Dance, My Neighbour's Pool, Half a Dozen

Leaps and Bounds (6 pieces)

RM470e Leaps and Bounds (6 pieces) Barrett OB
RM470e Leaps and Bounds (6 pieces) Barrett OB
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Composer: John Barrett
Composed: 2006 Duration: 10 mins.
Instrumentation: Oboe Solo
Exam Grade: HSC Oboe
ISMN: 979-0-720083-18-6 Catalogue: RM470
Level: B Country: Australia

Contents: Shuffle Over Here, We Don't Tango Here, The Minor Issue, The Boogie Woogie Woogie, Funkability , Be Bopaphobia

Flight of Fancy

RM421e Flight of Fancy Orlovich OB/PNO
RM421e Flight of Fancy Orlovich OB/PNO
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Composer: Matthew Orlovich
Composed: 2006 Duration: 3 mins.
Instrumentation: Oboe & Piano Level D
Exam Grade: HSC Oboe,
VCE Oboe
ISMN: 979-0-720083-10-0 Catalogue: RM421
Level: D Country: Australia

This piece, a flight of fancy for clarinet and piano, comprises three sections, each lasting about a minute or so. The first section kicks off in an energetic and cheerful way with the bright, upper registers of both instruments at play. Also evident in the opening section are ideas such as angular melodic lines played in unison, a little harp-like piano accompaniment texture and a contrasting theme fashioned atop a jazzy, dance-inspired bassline. The middle section of the work is perhaps the more unearthly music of the work. Little updrafts and whirlwinds of tinkling, glockenspiel-like piano figurations add a haunting quality to a chromatically inflected clarinet melody, evoking, for me, images of night and a kind of magic. The final section of the piece – which brings us back to earth with its recapitulation of earlier material – is characterised by the sound of its ‘slow-to-start’, hand-cranked engine.

One for Mum

RM189e One for Mum Davidson OB/PNO
RM189e One for Mum Davidson OB/PNO
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Composer: Lachlan Davidson
Composed: 1995 Duration: 4 mins.
Instrumentation: Oboe & Piano Level C
Exam Grade: HSC Oboe,
VCE Oboe
ISMN: M-720059-20-4 Catalogue: RM189
Level: C Country: Australia

I wrote this in 1995 (at a time when my Mum was sick) and I'm delighted that so many people have enjoyed playing it since, hopefully to their Mums too. I've heard many renditions and have enjoyed the diversity of interpretations people have brought to it. It is best to practise it slowly with the metronome, learning the tricky bits separately at first. Don't make too much of the semi-quavers as they are ornaments to the main melody but do try to be accurate with them and don't swallow them. Latch on to the accents as they really bring out the Latin-Jazz feel of the piece. The dynamics help create more emotional ebb and flow in the music.