[PW] marching double reeds (was: 76 Trombones)

[T. F. Mills]

On 5 Feb 2008 at 15:36, Fuller, Thomas (US - Washington D.C.) wrote:

> Double reeds, like oboes, English horns, and bassons, don't march.  The
> reeds break in your mouth. 

Somebody forgot to tell the Janissaries.  Allow me to spin off my own question in tentative 
disgreement with Tom's assertion that double reeds don't march.

My mother was a symphonic oboist, so I know how temperamental reeds can be.  And that 
has led me to wonder about the oboe bands that were all the rage in Europe in the late 17th 
and early 18th centuries, not only in chamber and theatre settings, but also in military 
ceremonial.  The rage reached England from France in 1678 when the Horse Grenadiers 
(precursors of the mounted Guards now seen in London) formed a band of four oboes and 
two bassoons.  Later the Dragoons (mounted infantry) regiments formed oboe bands, and in 
1684-85 all the Foot Guards regiments (the red tunics and bearskin hats of today) organized 
oboe bands.  These were definitely marching bands, including mounted (in which case the 
rider played the instrument with his hands and controlled the horse from the stirrups).

One of the best examples I have heard are Thomas Tollet's "The Queen's Farewell" and 
James Paisible's same title, both part of the funeral Queen Mary in 1695.  These pieces were 
overlooked until 1995 when Bruce Woods reconstructed the whole funeral service (almost all 
Henry Purcell music), which can be heard on the Sony SK 66243 recording.  The Tollet and 
Paisible marches are for miltary drums and oboes.  As Dekoven used to say, "OTW".  
(Modern audiences know the Purcell funeral music better from "Clockwork Orange".)  

There has recently been a revival of oboe bands of that period, but I have not heard or seen 
of any instances replicating the marching aspect.  The oboe evolved from the shawm, which 
had a wooden pirouette mouthpiece protecting the reed.  Since the lips did not touch the 
reeds, it produced a much more raucous sound.  Some say the military oboe (hautbois) in 
Europe came from the zurna of the Ottoman Janissaries. (The zurna sounds more like a 
shawm than a modern oboe.)  18th century military bands also adopted pseudo-Turkish 
costume, and also went for the Turkish jingling johnnies and cymbals.  Some also say that 
Janissary music was the mother all military music.

In all the recordings I have heard of oboe bands, they sound more like modern oboes than 
shawms.  I can imagine the shawm being seen as a militaristic kind of sound, but the oboe is 
so graceful and mellow that it often comes as a surprise to people that there were once 
military "oboe bands", especially at such an early stage in the development of military music.

For those curious about the sound of an oboe band, here is good example (six oboes and 
one bassoon, but not marching):
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=To6OdQTdgx8

YouTube also has several examples of Mehter, the modern recreation of the Janissaries 
band.  And here is a pretty crisp picture of Janissaries marching with zurnas, apparently 
oblivious to the danger):
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/fc/Mehter_zurna.jpg/450px-
Mehter_zurna.jpg


So my question boils down to this:  how did Baroque marching oboe bands (and the 
Janissaries) cope with their reeds?  Did they still use a pirouette mouthpiece to protect the 
reed (and the roof of the mouth from being impaled on it)?  If so, are modern recordings not 
truly faithful to the Baroque sound?  The modern revival of correct instrumentation for early 
music began with Noah Greenberg's New York Pro Musica in the 1950s, so it would be a 
shame if today's oboe bands still don't have it right.  Any music historians out there who can 
shed light?  I could write to an oboe band, but since Tom raised this point, I was curious if 
anybody here can solve it.

I have looked at "The Eloquent Oboe: a History of the Hautboy from 1640 to 1760" in Google 
books, but the section that looks most promising for an explicit answer is not online.  
Anybody have a print copy handy?

No rush on any of this -- just personal curiosity.



T.F. Mills                            (Colorado, USA)
temporary email:         phasco at earthlink.net
(pending resurrection of regiments.org mail)