my band teacher is forcing me to take a solo to District Solo and Ensemble Contest and was wondering if anyone can recomend a good solo to take. Thanks

What level are you at?

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with your playing I mean. Are you a beginner, intermediat, ect.

First movement of Cimarosa oboe concerto is nice. Not too hard either. Maybe the second movement too if you like it... It's a little faster though...

umm... I guess you could say Im at intermediate level, but it really depends on the music and how often I can convince my private teacher to work with me.

oh, Ill also take a look at that concerto...

I'm performing the Marcello oboe concerto for a contest, my oboe teacher says that it is a good intermediate piece.

Handel Sonata No.1 is pretty good. The second movement is pretty nice.

Pan is really nice. A bit short. Actually all of Britten's pieces are nice.

Albinoni in Dm is nice, and the first movement isn't too terribly difficult. It's about the level of the Cimarosa.

There's always the Marcello in Cm or a Handel Sonata as well. There's a lot to look at.

Albinoni 3rd movement is nice too. A little harder though. 2nd movement of Marcello is a nice one too.

It would help to know how long you've been playing.

The Nielsen Romances are a good concert piece. They're not too hard. The first movement requires musicality and pretty good endurance and has some piano slurs from middle D down to G that are hard to play smoothly, and the second (and last) movement has some technically challenging parts and requires good rhythm (it has dotted-eighth-and-two-thirty-seconds and double-dotted-eighth-and-thirty-second-note rhythms and triplets) and really good tonguing - fast and smooth.

One of the three Schumann Romances would also be a good option. One of the Romances has a challenging spot where the rhythmic feel of the melody doesn't match up with the beat. It's a little difficult to play the melody with the correct rhythmic feel without losing the actual beat. All of the Romances require strong musicality, since rubato is necessary and needs to be used musically and the phrasing really needs to be brought out (which means you have to be able to decide where the phrases are and where they should lead).

If you don't want to have to deal with rubato and strange rhythms, or if you don't yet know how to use vibrato, a baroque concerto or sonata would be a good choice. If you do a baroque piece, you'll definitely want to play a fast movement, and if that's not quite long enough, you can take a slow movement or another fast movement from the same piece. Keep in mind that slow baroque movements tend to require really good endurance and a strong focus on musicality. If you don't decide on phrasing for a slow baroque movement and really bring it out, they can sound kind of long-winded and boring. The fast movements tend to require good technique (as in scales) and a lot of practice with a metronome. You have to keep the beat (and rhythms within the beat) absolutely steady to give the music the driving feel it needs. A Handel sonata (c minor or g minor) would be a good choice, as would the Marcello concerto that many people have mentioned above. There is a version of the Marcello with Bach's ornamentation written in, which would save you the worry of having someone add ornamentation for you and/or teach you how to do it. A Bach sonata would also be a good choice for that reason: apparently, Bach didn't want musicians adding ornamentation to his work. A Vivaldi concerto or sonata would be an excellent option, but it would definitely require some ornamentation. If you pick a Handel sonata or a Vivaldi piece, make sure to listen to good recordings to get ideas for ornamentation.

Whatever piece you pick, I would strongly suggest getting (at least) one of Elaine Douvas's Oboe Classics books. There is a beginner book, an intermediate book, and an advanced book. Many of these pieces are in them, and the books come with her comments on how to play the pieces and a CD of her playing them.

thanks for all the suggestions guys Im sure Ill find something. And my private teacher has a book of solos (but I have to have a piano acc. with it and I don't think any of his do ) also it has to be memorized

anyway, Ive been playing since May 2008 but my band teacher and private teacher both agree Im very advanced for have only been playing since last May. Im already playing things written for oboists who have been playing for a few years :D

Oh, a really good solo book that was recomended to me by one of my teachers has a lot of oboe solos of lots of levels, all with piano accompaniment. It is called "Oboe Solos". I have used it alot since I have gotten it for various competitions and auditions. Just in case you're interested!

http://www.sheetmusicplus.com/store/smp_detail.html?item=3608126&cart=34402663821896341&cm_re=289.1.4-_-Results+Item-_-Title

actually, I don't sound like a dying duck XD My band teacher says my tone is better than people who have been playing 2+ years XD. Oh, and for some reason, I always play my nots perfectly in tune... I have no idea why I sound this good (according to everyone else that is- I thought I sounded like anyone who just started out when I started :P)

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*notes