Most European musical instruments originate from the orient. The shawm too, with its double reed, conical tube and flared bell section reached Europe in the course of Islamic wanderings, turning up there in the 12th century at the latest. In the l6th century the shawm was built up into an entire family, comprising small, high, large and deep members, from which were developed about a dozen variants. In the first half of the 17th century the deep shawms and the variants disappeared from performance practice. What remained was the discant shawm, which was developed in France around the middle of the century into an instrument known in French as hautbois (= high wood). The Italians phonetically transformed this word into oboe, which then turned into oboe in German.
The basic key scale of the oboe is D major. By way of a key for c’ the range is extended downwards by one note. The chromatic notes come about by half covering or crossfingering, and only for e’ - flat there are two keys for the little fingers, one left and the other right, since up to the middle of the l8th century performers held either the left or the right hand downwards.
In the 18th century the oboe was again expanded into a little family. Around l720 the oboe d’amore or “Liebesoboe" in A was evolved, i.e. transposed downwards a minor third, with a straight tube and a pear-shaped foot (Liebesfuss) which gives the instrument a softer tone. The method of playing is the same as with the oboe. The concerto by J. S. Bach played on this record has been preserved as a piano concerto, but actually is an arrangement of a score which has been mislaid for a different solo instrument. It is played here on an oboe d’amore made by Johann Wilhelm Oberlender, also of Nuremberg. Oberlender’s son later took over Jacob Denner’s workshop.
In the same century several forms of oboes in F emerged, transposed a fifth lower and bearing various names. One of these at first had a curved tube with a leather covering (which was later bent) and also had a “Liebesfuss”. Its confusing name was the English horn. The instrument used in this recording made by J. Baur of Vienna dates back to the second half of the century, when the right hand was still being used in the downward position, so that only one e’ - flat key to the right still exists. In 1789 Mozart composed for an instrument of this klnd the Adagio for English horn and three accompanying parts which were not more clearly specified.