The oboe ( OH-boh) is a type of double-reed woodwind instrument. Oboes are usually made of wood, but may also be made of synthetic materials, such as plastic, resin, or hybrid composites. The most common type of oboe, the soprano oboe pitched in C, measures roughly 65 cm (25+1⁄2 in) long and has metal keys, a conical bore and a flared bell. Sound is produced by blowing into the reed at a sufficient air pressure, causing it to vibrate with the air column. The distinctive tone is versatile and has been described as "bright". When the word oboe is used alone, it is generally taken to mean the soprano member rather than other instruments of the family, such as the bass oboe, the cor anglais (English horn), or oboe d'amore. Today, the oboe is commonly used as orchestral or solo instrument in symphony orchestras, concert bands and chamber ensembles. The oboe is especially used in classical music, film music, some genres of folk music, and is occasionally heard in jazz, rock, pop, and popular music. The oboe is widely recognized as the instrument that tunes the orchestra with its distinctive A. A musician who plays the oboe is called an oboist.

In classical music, a fugue (, from Latin fuga, meaning 'flight' or 'escape') is a contrapuntal, polyphonic compositional technique in two or more voices, built on a subject (a musical theme) that is introduced at the beginning in imitation (repetition at different pitches), which recurs frequently throughout the course of the composition. It is not to be confused with a fuguing tune, which is a style of song popularized by and mostly limited to early American (i.e. shape note or "Sacred Harp") music and West Gallery music. A fugue usually has three main sections: an exposition, a development, and a final entry that contains the return of the subject in the fugue's tonic key. Fugues can also have episodes, which are parts of the fugue where new material often based on the subject is heard; a stretto (plural stretti), when the fugue's subject overlaps itself in different voices, or a recapitulation. A popular compositional technique in the Baroque era, the fugue was fundamental in showing mastery of harmony and tonality as it presented counterpoint. In the Middle Ages, the term was widely used to denote any works in canonic style; however, by the Renaissance, it had come to denote specifically imitative works. Since the 17th century, the term fugue has described what is commonly regarded as the most fully developed procedure of imitative counterpoint. Most fugues open with a short main theme, called the subject, which then sounds successively in each voice. When each voice has completed its entry of the subject, the exposition is complete. This is often followed by a connecting passage, or episode, developed from previously heard material; further "entries" of the subject are then heard in related keys. Episodes (if applicable) and entries are usually alternated until the final entry of the subject, at which point the music has returned to the opening key, or tonic, which is often followed by a coda. Because of the composer's prerogative to decide most structural elements, the fugue is closer to a style of composition rather than a structural form. The form evolved during the 18th century from several earlier types of contrapuntal compositions, such as imitative ricercars, capriccios, canzonas, and fantasias. The Baroque composer Johann Sebastian Bach (1685–1750), well known for his fugues, shaped his own works after those of Jan Pieterszoon Sweelinck (1562–1621), Johann Jakob Froberger (1616–1667), Johann Pachelbel (1653–1706), Girolamo Frescobaldi (1583–1643), Dieterich Buxtehude (c. 1637–1707) and others. With the decline of sophisticated styles at the end of the baroque period, the fugue's central role waned, eventually giving way as sonata form and the symphony orchestra rose to a more prominent position. Nevertheless, composers continued to write and study fugues; they appear in the works of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756–1791) and Ludwig van Beethoven (1770–1827), as well as modern composers such as Dmitri Shostakovich (1906–1975) and Paul Hindemith (1895–1963).

This is a list of compositions by Polish composer Witold Lutosławski. A complete list of Lutosławski's compositions in chronological order can be found at The Polish Music Center.

Witold Roman Lutosławski (Polish: [ˈvitɔlt lutɔˈswafskʲi] ; 25 January 1913 – 7 February 1994) was a Polish composer and conductor. Among the major composers of 20th-century classical music, he is "generally regarded as the most significant Polish composer since Szymanowski, and possibly the greatest Polish composer since Chopin". His compositions—of which he was a notable conductor—include representatives of most traditional genres, aside from opera: symphonies, concertos, orchestral song cycles, other orchestral works, and chamber works. Among his best known works are his four symphonies, the Variations on a Theme by Paganini (1941), the Concerto for Orchestra (1954), and his cello concerto (1970). During his youth, Lutosławski studied piano and composition in Warsaw. His early works were influenced by Polish folk music and demonstrated a wide range of rich atmospheric textures. His folk-inspired music includes the Concerto for Orchestra (1954)—which first brought him international renown—and Dance Preludes (1955), which he described as a "farewell to folklore". From the late 1950s he began developing new, characteristic composition techniques. He introduced limited aleatoric elements, while retaining tight control of his music's material, architecture, and performance. He also evolved his practice of building harmonies from small groups of musical intervals. During World War II, after narrowly escaping German capture, Lutosławski made a living playing the piano in Warsaw bars. After the war, Stalinist authorities banned his First Symphony for being "formalist": accessible only to an elite. Rejecting anti-formalism as an unjustified retrograde step, Lutosławski resolutely strove to maintain his artistic integrity, providing artistic support to the Solidarity movement throughout the 1980s. He received numerous awards and honours, including the Grawemeyer Award and a Royal Philharmonic Society Gold Medal. In 1994, Lutosławski was awarded Poland's highest honour, the Order of the White Eagle.

Along with a concerted effort to commission new works for brass quintet since 1967 the bulk of any brass quintet's repertoire consists of arrangements of pre-existing music. Victor Ewald's four brass quintets are the first serious attempts at establishing a repertoire for the ensemble, though they do not stand up to typical string quartet repertoire of the same and preceding eras. The Chicago and New York Brass Quintets made sustained efforts to commission new works, and much of the original repertoire for brass quintet from the mid-20th century derives from their groundbreaking work. In the 1960s the mantle of creating a repertoire for brass quintet was taken up by the American Brass Quintet and the New York Brass Quintet, with both groups essentially establishing the brass quintet as a part of the chamber music field. Notably, only two brass quintets have ever been awarded the Walter W. Naumburg Chamber Music Award, considered by many to be the highest achievement in brass chamber music: The Empire Brass Quintet in 1976 and The Saturday Brass Quintet in 1990. But it was Canadian Brass that developed the pragmatic approach to repertoire allowed the ensemble to reach a wider audience. They developed a two prong approach to performance, developing a masterpiece approach to repertoire that popularized the brass quintet as an ensemble into what was essentially a "pops" ensemble. Meanwhile, the ensemble has been pursuing an aggressive 45-year commissioning schedule. Though this ensemble is seldom recognized for its achievement in the contemporary sphere, they have created well over 100 newly composed works for brass quintet, though few of the Canadian Brass commissions of original compositions have taken hold in the repertoire of other brass quintets. It is generally agreed amongst brass players that the tuba is the dominant choice for brass quintets, with the ability to play smaller instruments such as bass trombone or baritone for certain repertoire such as Renaissance. The American Brass Quintet has always used bass trombone instead of tuba, and their extensive commissioning has validated use of this instrumentation. It is not uncommon for composers to write interchangeable parts for tuba and bass trombone to enable both types of quintets to perform their work.

This is a list of compositions for cello and piano. It includes sonatas as well as other pieces for cello and piano.

A string orchestra is an orchestra consisting solely of a string section made up of the bowed strings used in Western Classical music. The instruments of such an orchestra are most often the following: the violin, which is divided into first and second violin players (each usually playing different parts), the viola, the cello, and usually, but not always, the double bass. String orchestras can be of chamber orchestra size ranging from between 12 (4 first violins, 3 second violins, 2 violas, 2 cellos and 1 bass = 12) and 21 musicians (6 first violins, 5 second violins, 4 violas, 4 cellos and 2 double basses= 21) sometimes performing without a conductor. It could also consist of the entire string section of a large symphony orchestra which could have 60 musicians (16 first violins, 14 second violins, 12 violas, 10 cellos and 8 double basses = 60; Gurre-Lieder calls for 84: 20.20.16.16.12).

This is a list of compositions by Polish composer Witold Lutosławski. A complete list of Lutosławski's compositions in chronological order can be found at The Polish Music Center.

Along with a concerted effort to commission new works for brass quintet since 1967 the bulk of any brass quintet's repertoire consists of arrangements of pre-existing music. Victor Ewald's four brass quintets are the first serious attempts at establishing a repertoire for the ensemble, though they do not stand up to typical string quartet repertoire of the same and preceding eras. The Chicago and New York Brass Quintets made sustained efforts to commission new works, and much of the original repertoire for brass quintet from the mid-20th century derives from their groundbreaking work. In the 1960s the mantle of creating a repertoire for brass quintet was taken up by the American Brass Quintet and the New York Brass Quintet, with both groups essentially establishing the brass quintet as a part of the chamber music field. Notably, only two brass quintets have ever been awarded the Walter W. Naumburg Chamber Music Award, considered by many to be the highest achievement in brass chamber music: The Empire Brass Quintet in 1976 and The Saturday Brass Quintet in 1990. But it was Canadian Brass that developed the pragmatic approach to repertoire allowed the ensemble to reach a wider audience. They developed a two prong approach to performance, developing a masterpiece approach to repertoire that popularized the brass quintet as an ensemble into what was essentially a "pops" ensemble. Meanwhile, the ensemble has been pursuing an aggressive 45-year commissioning schedule. Though this ensemble is seldom recognized for its achievement in the contemporary sphere, they have created well over 100 newly composed works for brass quintet, though few of the Canadian Brass commissions of original compositions have taken hold in the repertoire of other brass quintets. It is generally agreed amongst brass players that the tuba is the dominant choice for brass quintets, with the ability to play smaller instruments such as bass trombone or baritone for certain repertoire such as Renaissance. The American Brass Quintet has always used bass trombone instead of tuba, and their extensive commissioning has validated use of this instrumentation. It is not uncommon for composers to write interchangeable parts for tuba and bass trombone to enable both types of quintets to perform their work.

This is a list of musical compositions for violin, cello and orchestra, ordered by surname of composer Please see the related entries for concerto, cello and cello concerto for discussion of typical forms and topics. The orchestra in each case is a standard symphonic orchestra unless otherwise indicated.

This is a list of compositions by Polish composer Witold Lutosławski. A complete list of Lutosławski's compositions in chronological order can be found at The Polish Music Center.

This is a list of notable solo cello pieces. It includes arrangements and transcriptions.

Witold Lutosławski's String Quartet was commissioned by Sveriges Radio for the tenth anniversary of its new music program "Nutida Musik." It was completed in 1964 and its world premiere was performed by the LaSalle Quartet in Stockholm on March 12, 1965.

This is a list of compositions by Polish composer Witold Lutosławski. A complete list of Lutosławski's compositions in chronological order can be found at The Polish Music Center.

The oboe ( OH-boh) is a type of double-reed woodwind instrument. Oboes are usually made of wood, but may also be made of synthetic materials, such as plastic, resin, or hybrid composites. The most common type of oboe, the soprano oboe pitched in C, measures roughly 65 cm (25+1⁄2 in) long and has metal keys, a conical bore and a flared bell. Sound is produced by blowing into the reed at a sufficient air pressure, causing it to vibrate with the air column. The distinctive tone is versatile and has been described as "bright". When the word oboe is used alone, it is generally taken to mean the soprano member rather than other instruments of the family, such as the bass oboe, the cor anglais (English horn), or oboe d'amore. Today, the oboe is commonly used as orchestral or solo instrument in symphony orchestras, concert bands and chamber ensembles. The oboe is especially used in classical music, film music, some genres of folk music, and is occasionally heard in jazz, rock, pop, and popular music. The oboe is widely recognized as the instrument that tunes the orchestra with its distinctive A. A musician who plays the oboe is called an oboist.

Esa-Pekka Salonen (pronounced [ˈesɑˌpekːɑ ˈsɑlonen] ; born 30 June 1958) is a Finnish conductor and composer. He is the principal conductor designate of Orchestre de Paris and creative director designate of the Los Angeles Philharmonic. He is also conductor laureate of the Los Angeles Philharmonic, Philharmonia Orchestra in London and the Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra. He was music director of the San Francisco Symphony from 2020 to 2025.