Following the death of Frans Brüggen in August 2014, the decision was taken by the Orchestra of the Eighteenth Century to continue touring the world, and inviting various guest conductors who have worked with the ensemble over the years, such as Daniel Reuss and Andrea Marcon, and indeed Kenneth Montgomery, who directs the orchestral pieces on this brand new recording for Glossa.

The first recorded result of the post-Brüggen era is this Mozart CD with a programme centred on the oboe, which has been devised by longstanding orchestra member, Frank de Bruine. Mozart has been central to the Orchestra’s music making and the composer made many friends with wind players – including oboists – and wrote abundantly for them. De Bruine, himself is the soloist in the C major Oboe Concerto (the original version of the Flute Concerto, KV 314) and is present in two chamber pieces, the F major Oboe Quartet, KV 370 and the D major Divertimento, KV 251. The CD closes with the concert aria, “Vorrei spiegarvi, oh Dio!”, KV 418 sung by Dutch soprano Lenneke Ruiten. This new chapter in the recorded history of the Orchestra of the Eighteenth Century is crowned with an essay by scholar Clemens Romijn.

1-3 Concerto for oboe and orchestra in C major, KV 314
4-6 Quartet for oboe, violin, viola and cello in F major, KV 370
7-12 Divertimento for 2 violins, viola, bass, oboe and 2 horns in D major, KV 251
13 Aria for soprano and orchestra, “Vorrei spiegarvi, oh Dio!”, KV 418