Sonata for oboe and piano (Poulenc)

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Francis Poulenc's Oboe Sonata for oboe and piano was written in 1962. It is one of the last pieces he completed and also the last for a solo wind instrument.

With the words 'à la mémoire de Serge Prokofieff', Poulenc dedicates the sonata to the famous composer Sergei Prokofiev , whose piano works he has taken as a model, especially for the second movement.

The piece has three movements:

  1. Elégie (Paisiblement, sans presser) ( Elegie )
  2. Scherzo (Très animé) ( Scherzo )
  3. Déploration (Très calme) (Déploration = lament)

The sentences are written in the order slow-fast-slow, in contrast to the traditional fast-slow-fast form.

A normal performance lasts about 13-15 minutes.

The sonata is the last of Poulenc's three sonatas for woodwind instruments ; the sonata for flute and piano (1956) and the sonata for clarinet and piano (1962).