Mini-Course by Khara Wolf
Introduction to Celtic Oboe
This project has been many years in the making. In 2019, I began putting together a set of 20 tunes by the 17th and 18th century composer Turlough O’Carolan.
The first set was arranged for oboe + harp with Shelley Phillips, oboe and harpist. Due to Covid in 2020, and then a back injury, this project was put on hold. In 2022 I put together the same set for oboe + guitar and had the guitar parts recorded by Silas Hamilton.
It brings me immense joy to be finally sharing these arrangements in an introduction course to teach how I have adapted the traditional Celtic genres on the oboe.
Course Media
Reference Demo
This is a reference recording of me playing Carolan’s Draught live with the piano MIDI. Unedited; recorded at home.
Suggested Listening
Whistle + Harp [YouTube]
Session Style [YouTube]
Harp & Hammer Dulcimer [YouTube]
Ornamentation Tutorial
This video will walk you through the key ornamentation techniques one at a time for intermediate, advanced, and professional players.
Full Score + Oboe Part
This version downloads as a PDF and includes all of the guitar chords, slurs, and suggested Celtic ornamentation.
This is the version I perform in the demo and use to teach the ornamentation.
It is perfect for intermediate through professional players looking to explore the full range of the recommended styles.
Sheet Music Version A: Oboe + Piano
With Ornaments & Chords
This version downloads as a PDF and includes all of the guitar chords, slurs, and suggested Celtic ornamentation.
This is the version I perform in the demo and use to teach the ornamentation.
It is perfect for intermediate through professional players looking to explore the full range of the recommended styles.
Sheet Music Version B: Oboe + Guitar
Clean Version
This version downloads as a PDF and does not include any chords, slurs, or ornamenations.
This version is ideal for beginner players in your studio who might get easily confused by the extra notation. O’Carolan tunes are wonderful for beginners without the ornamenation.
For seasoned professionals, this sheet music is a blank slate to make your own. Add your own slurs, ornamentation, and/or chords - in any style you’d like from Baroque to Celtic.
About the Composer: Turlough O’Carolan
Legend has it that O’Carolan’s funeral was so large it resembled a modern-day Woodstock.
Turlough O’Carolan was one of the most well-known Celtic composers of his time. As a harpist and composer in the 17th and 18th century, he spent his summers in England and winters in Ireland, where he traveled around performing for high courts and learning a wide variety of folk styles.
His music was originally written for harp, but has been performed, arranged, and celebrated on a variety of folk instruments. It falls easily on the oboe and can be enjoyed in a variety of styles - from classical to baroque to folk.
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