7 Bassoon Concertos YOU Should Listen to this Week

cmp2020 (72)in #music • 7 years ago (edited)

Hello everyone, last week I posted my first weekly7 in a while, and decided that I would be starting a sub-series on concertos with specific instruments featured. The bassoon and the oboe are two instruments with a sound that is concise and beautiful. I only recently discovered them as I became more interested in classical music. Here are 7 Bassoon Concertos I have picked for you to listen to to hear the beauty this instrument possesses:

7. Bassoon Concerto in G Minor - Antonio Vivaldi

I'm sorry, the second I saw the harpsichordist in the beginning of this video sitting while the bassoonist came out, I thought of that kid from Charlie Brown who plays the piano. It is only fitting that we start this list out with the concerto king. These lists will likely contain a lot of Vivaldi, he had hundreds of concertos. My first thought when listening to this is that it sounds like something that would be played in an Italian pizza shop. It really doesn't sound that minor even though it's in a minor key, it sounds in between minor and major, and sounds like something you'd play as you take the train to work and watch the people around you.

6. Bassoon Concerto in E flat Major - Johann Christian Bach

This piece sounds quite uplifting. The bassoon part also sounds more developed than Vivaldi's Bassoon part was. It is actually quite majestic. Like the bassoon represents someone who is gifted, but does not believe that entitles him to anything, and works hard. I don't know, that is just what I think of when I listen to this. I also hear some slight similarities to what I have noticed in Mozart's music. I can also hear some other similarities to Johann Sebastian Bach in this, almost like it's in between the styles of the two composers.

5. Bassoon Concerto in B Flat Major - Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart

You can tell this piece is Mozart almost right away. After Vivaldi, I think Mozart was probably one of the best at writing concertos, especially for instruments such as Oboes and Bassoons because of how light and playful they can be. Mozart's music almost always has a light and playful mood to me. These instruments, therefore, really fit Mozart's character and style as a composer. I look forward to listening to some of his other wood wind concertos. This piece is not quite as complex as the last piece, and sounds a little bit less complicated, and a little bit more subtle with complexities such as trills and scales. IT has them, but not so much as to almost show off the performers skill. This piece sounds more or less as if it is meant to show off this instruments elegant sound, and clear range. As a result, I think this piece is very beautiful!

4. Duet Concertino for Clarinet and Bassoon - Richard Strauss

I have set a precedent with the last list that concertos with two featured instruments can still be included. I chose this piece because I knew that Strauss wrote a lot of concertos too, and felt that I should check if he had a concerto for bassoon, and this is what I found. This piece is a lot more relaxing than any of the other pieces on this list at first, until Strauss brings out more clarinet with a harsher sound. After this, it sounds like the bassoon and clarinet are communicating, and the orchestra is spectating this conversation, interjecting its own ideas at points. Strauss knew how to orchestrate a good accompaniment for a concerto that was assertive, but still left room for the featured soloists to grow and develop.

3. Bassoon Concerto in F Major - Carl Maria von Weber

I had never heard of this composer until looking for pieces to include in this list. But, this concerto is quite good. The bassoon and orchestra parts really do balance well together. Much like Mozart, much of Weber's interpretation of the bassoon seems to be light and playful. The bassoon part sounds complex, but not complicated in a way as to show off the performer, but complicated in a way that displays the range of the instrument.

2. Concerto For Bassoon And Orchestra - Gioachino Rossini

This piece is probably the most joyous on this list so far. It sounds very upbeat! I enjoy how Rossini uses the orchestra to portray a happy and upbeat sound, and uses the bassoon to portray a tender yet happy sound. Much of this piece sounds similar to Rossini's overtures to me, specifically The Barber of Seville in that they are both a little bit playful, and a little bit joyful. I enjoy the tempo changes between when the orchestra is featured, and when the bassoon is featured.

1. Bassoon Concerto in A Minor - Antonio Vivaldi

I included this in my birthday post for Vivaldi. This piece is more on the dark side than a lot of pieces in this list. The bassoon is obviously featured, you can almost always hear the bassoon, even in parts where the orchestra is featured. The bassoon part of this piece sounds slightly complex, and uses the lower part of the bassoons range. As I said before, this piece makes me think of jogging because I can't jog, so jogging is dark to me.

All Previous Weekly7s

Thanks for reading this! Make sure to comment which of these concertos was your favorite. Also, I hope to eventually have more people posting weekly7's but with different topics, like I will almost always stick to classical music/music in general, so it would be great to see other people post weekly7s. Make sure to leave feedback and check back later!

Also remember to check for: My weekly 7 post, As Well As My Composer Birthday Posts
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7 years ago in #music by cmp2020 (72)

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qsounds (57) 7 years ago

I'm someone that likes classical music, but dont take enough time to listen to it, and get to know the wide spectrum of the genre. I was pleased to learn about you being someone who studies classical music and like your posts with suggestions what to listen to. I bookmarked this post for later reference! @classical-music and @remlaps brought me to your account; A small thanks to both of you :)