Chamber recordings of major repertory on modern instruments is becoming increasingly rare on recordings, but Russian-born oboist Alexeï Ogrintchouk shows there's still considerable life in the genre with this selection of Mozart works for oboe. The underperformed Oboe Quartet in F major, K. 370, is a real highlight here. This work blends sparkling melody and virtuosity (it was composed for a famed oboist of Mozart's time) in a way that clearly looks forward to, and is nearly on a par with, the clarinet masterpieces of Mozart's last years, and Ogrintchouk plays it to the hilt in a performance that remains relaxed despite the very high technical demands placed on the soloist. The Oboe Concerto in C major, K. 314, probably better known in its D major version for flute and orchestra, is very nearly as good. There was no reason for BIS' engineers to mike Ogrintchouk quite so closely in the large Lithuanian National Philharmonic Hall, picking up a good number of clicking keys, but in both the quartet and the concerto he serves as a talented leader (and conductor in the concerto, which is rare for wind players), generating ensemble work well beyond the norm in each case. The transcription of the Violin Sonata in B flat major, K. 378, is not quite so successful, even if, as the notes point out, this work was transcribed for various instruments going back to Mozart's own time. The piano is the dominant partner in the work, and the odd timbre of the oboe makes a slightly strange impression as an accompanying instrument. There is, however, nothing to complain about in any of the performances by Ogrintchouk, the lead oboist of the Concertgebouw Orchestra in Amsterdam and clearly both a technically and interpretively gifted player. The recording of the Oboe Quartet here is worth the price of admission by itself. (James Manheim)
