The oboe was among that astonishingly long list of instruments in which Telemann claimed proficiency. My own guess is that, at least in the case of the present instrument, he probably was not just swanking, for the oboe concertos and those in which one or more oboes play a prominent part are amongst the finest from his pen. Although he claimed that writing concertos never came easily to him, his best examples are worthy of standing beside or, at least, in the proximity of the strongest specimens of his contemporaries. Perhaps the oboe concertos are not always in the first flight of his imagination but two of the five recorded here come pretty close to it. I'm thinking particularly of the Concerto in E minor which has been recorded occasionally in the past. It's a four-movement work—Telemann showed a marked leaning towards this formal layout as opposed to the more up-to-date three-movement arrangement favoured by Vivaldi and Bach—which opens with a broad, expressive and rather melancholy Andante. The ASMF sound far too relaxed here, and I missed a tautness and discipline which helps to give the movement both shape and purpose. The remainder of the work sounded altogether more convincing.
The other particularly strong concerto is the C minor which, like the E minor, has been recorded before. Its deliciously dissonant opening bar is quite startling, with Telemann's immediately recognizable Polish ingredients playing a part in the exotic finale. I very much disliked the liberties taken with the tempo here and there; the exaggerated rubota is, surely, completely misplaced since it diminishes rather than increases the sense of excitement at points where Telemann aims at surprise. The playing, in general, though, is vigorous, and there is a good rapport between soloist and ripieno.
The remaining three concertos are new to the catalogue. The F minor work is not the fairly well-known oboe concerto by Telemann in that key but a slighter work with a beautifully shaped recitative, as suitable for the voice as for the oboe. The Concerto in D minor is a more powerful piece with an energetic second movement of fiery Italian temperament far removed from the rococo elegance which typifies so many of his concerto movements. Hardly less striking is the poignant cantilena-like opening Adagio with its restless accompaniment of the solo line which emerges right at the outset; and there are some unusual harmonic progressions in the brief adagio link between the two fast movements. The terse finale is also strongly Italianate recalling, in its ritornello, the soprano duet of the Gloria from Vivaldi's Beatus Vir (RV597).
The remaining Concerto in D major is more characteristic of Telemann with its rococo flavour, high spirits and generally light-hearted idiom. Here the ASMF give Heinz Holliger splendid support, making the most of the music's little witticisms. I would have preferred less vibrato from Holliger's playing since it does not seem to add anything of value to the music, but his musicianship, impeccable technique and tasteful ornamentation are not qualities that I would wish to be without. Apart from the reservations already mentioned I thoroughly enjoyed this LP, especially on account of Holliger's mastery of his instrument and for the opportunity of hearing three unfamiliar concertos by a composer of whose music I am unashamedly fond. Immaculate pressings and good digital sound.'