Osborne: Rhapsody

Dublin Core

Title

Osborne: Rhapsody

Subject

Music Resource Item Type Metadata

Composer

Osborne, Willson (1906-1979).

Gender

Male

Work

Rhapsody. New York: Peters.

Duration

5 minutes

Description

Perhaps the best-known unaccompanied bassoon piece, the Rhapsody was composed in Philadelphia in 1952 and dedicated to Sol Schoenbach. Originally titled Study for Bassoon, the work was written and recorded for broadcast by WNYC Radio in New York in February 1953. This moderately challenging piece is primarily lyrical, but often with daunting large descending slurred leaps. The music is pitch-centric and conservative, often using the Phrygian mode. The full range of the bassoon is used up to Bbb4. The piece was required for the 1983 Fernand Gillet Young Artist Performance Competition, sponsored by the IDRS.

Discography

Crystal CD 347 (CD)      David DeBolt
Ravenna RAV 761 (LP)      Arthur Grossman
ACA Digital 20045 (CD)      Jeff Keesecker
Music Alliance MA 9712834 (CD)      Akio Koyama
Cala CACD 0515 (CD)      Judith LeClair
Golden Crest CRS 4217 (LP)      James McKay
ALM AL 7002 (LP)      Koji Okazaki
MSR Classics MS 1734 (CD)   Scott Pool
Coronet 1294 (LP)      Leonard Sharrow

Reference

IDRS Journal 11, pp. 10-13.

Date Range of Work

1952