The Cosi Quartet plays Classical Oboe Quartets
$10-$25
František Krommer — Selected works
Pavel Mašek — Selected works
Joseph Leopold Eybler — Selected works
At the dawn of the 18th Century, the oboe experienced a breathtaking ascent to become the solo instrument par excellence, second perhaps only to the ubiquitous violin.
As the century pressed on and the oboe settled into a role as an ensemble player in the burgeoning symphonic scene, it took a back seat as an orchestral soloist. Nevertheless, there was no shortage of virtuoso players, and composers sought a new venue of expression for their friends and colleagues. Thus was born the oboe quartet, and its brief popularity as a genre yielded a wealth of stunning virtuoso repertoire that is little explored today.
The Cosi Quartet offers its acclaimed survey of this fabulous music, including unknown gems juxtaposed with the only quartet from this period regularly performed today. Works by František Krommer, a recently-unearthed showpiece by Bohemian-born composer Pavel Mašek, and an epic string trio by Mozart's friend Joseph Leopold Eybler (who completed his Requiem) compliment the master's only work in the genre, Mozart's beloved Oboe Quartet in F.
The Cosi Quartet, consisting of some of the Northwest's top period instrumentalists (Curtis Foster, oboe; Linda Melsted, violin; Laurel Wells, viola; and Meg Brennand, cello), present this engaging program along with historical insights and anecdotes that help the audience put this unusual combination in context. See for yourself why this concert was the most highly-attended concert on the Seattle Early Music Guild's First Friday chamber series in 2014!
Tickets: $25 ($20 senior, $10 student)