A Lorée Royal 125 Amethyst oboe on display at the Lorée Day at UCLA event

On January 13, 2020, about 50 oboists joined us for Lorée Day at UCLA. Hosted by Dr. Jonathan Davis, professor of oboe at UCLA Herb Alpert School of Music, the event featured an orchestral excerpt masterclass, a presentation about the history of Lorée Paris and its current models, and opportunities to play new Lorée instruments.

Led by Sarah Skuster, principal oboe of the San Diego Symphony, the masterclass featured 7 oboists from the Southern California area, all of whom prepared 2 excerpts. They included:

Thacher Schreiber
Jones Sabal
Kyle Kurihara
Will Stevens
Sooyoung Kim
Jason Kennedy
Eli Stefanacci

After a short welcome message by Dr. Davis, Sarah Skuster beautifully performed a mini recital consisting of two pieces. The first selection was Fantasia in A Major by Georg Philipp Telemann; the second selection was Sonatina for Oboe and Piano by Malcolm Arnold, where Ms. Skuster was accompanied by Wendy Caldwell on piano. 

Attendees had a chance to meet Alain de Gourdon, President of Lorée Paris, who has been manufacturing Lorée instruments for more than 50 years.  Oboists gathered around his workstation in between presentations to not only talk shop, but also to have small adjustments made on their Lorée instruments.  Many attendees we spoke to were amazed at how quickly he was able to identify adjustment issues and correct them. Alain also had the spotlight on the Shoenberg Hall stage immediately after Sarah Skuster's mini recital. He spoke about the history of the Lorée company and went into detail about when each model was introduced and how they make up the current lineup of available models today.

A selection of Lorée oboes were available for all attendees to try. We were lucky to see a couple models that we don't get to see too often- the Lorée Royal 125 Amethyst oboe and Lorée Royal 125 English horn. 

Ok, enough words form us. We'd like photos from the event to tell the rest of the story. All photos were taken by Joseph Paguio. Be prepared to scroll for a while...we promise that it's worth it!

An event program at registration


A collection of Lorée oboes and English horns waiting for attendees to play test

 
Holly and Justin P. handing badges to attendees

Alain de Gourdon makes adjustments on an attendee's Lorée oboe

Dr. Jonathan Davis welcomes attendees before the recital

Wendy Caldwell accompanies Sarah Skuster during a mini recital

Alain de Gourdon presenting the history of the Lorée Paris

A question from the audience

Sarah Skuster and Nancy Huang, president of RDG Woodwinds

Schoenberg Hall during the masterclass

Thacher Schreiber plays Don Juan by Strauss

Jones Sabal plays Pulcinella Suite by Stravinsky

Kyle Kurihara plays Cantata BWV 12 by J.S. Bach and Symphony No. 3 by Mendelssohn

Will Stevens plays La Scala di Seta by Rossini and Cantata No. 202 "Wedding Cantata" by J.S. Bach
Sooyoung Kim plays Symphony No. 3 by Beethoven and Symphony No. 4 by Tchaikovsky

Jason Kennedy plays Pictures at an Exhibition by Mussorgsky and Violin Concerto by Brahms

Eli Stefanacci plays Trio for Oboe, Bassoon, and Piano by Poulenc
The trio includes Anjai Pillai on bassoon and Veola Sun on piano

Attendees gather around the entrance of Schoenberg hall during intermission

An assortment of food provided by RDG

 
Photo op!

The UCLA oboe studio featuring Sarah Skuster

Alain de Gourdon, Sarah Skuster, Jonathan Davis, Nancy Huang, and the RDG team

Thank you to everyone who joined us for this event!

On February 1, 2020, Concordia University (Irvine, CA) will be hosting its third annual Double Reed Day.  This event will feature live performances, reed making masterclasses, and exhibition of double reed vendors!

Classes will be taught by Concordia University's double reed professors-
Siri Lyon, oboe, and Elizabeth Low-Atwater, bassoon.

There are 2 masterclass sessions during the event. Here are the details from the official event page:

"We are offering two reed making masterclasses for both oboe and bassoon:
Session #1 is in lecture format and is designed for those who want a general overview of the reed making process.

Session #2 is a hands-on lesson with reed making tools, including knives. Oboists will learn how to scrape and adjust reeds, and bassoonists will learn how to wire, turban and cut the tip to finish the reed. To ensure we have enough materials for everyone, please be sure to specify if you would like to participate in or observe Session #2."

Exhibitors include RDG Woodwinds and Angela Wells of http://thereedery.com/. 
We plan to bring reed-making tools and cane that will be available to purchase at the event. If you are still searching for tools, we'd be happy to discuss your options and provide some recommendations.  Angela Wells is an expert woodwind repair technician based out of Lakewood, CA, and will be available for on-the-spot adjustments on oboes and bassoons. Bring your instruments to take advantage of this opportunity.

For more details and to register, please visit the event page at https://www.cui.edu/en-us/arts/music/events/double-reed-day.

Registration ends on Wednesday, January 29th, so be sure to sign up as soon as you know if you'll be able to make it.


If you have any questions about the event, please contact Siri or Elizabeth at
Siri Lyon: siri.bloom@cui.edu
Elizabeth Low-Atwater: elizabeth.low-atwater@cui.edu

We hope you'll be able to join us!

Marigaux and RDG Woodwinds are excited to be hosting a masterclass with London Symphony Orchestra Principal Oboist Juliana Koch!  This masterclass will focus on oboe solo repertoire and will feature a solo performance by Ms. Koch.

When                Wed | April 17, 2019 | 7PM- 9PM

Where              RDG Woodwinds, Inc.
                          589 N Larchmont Blvd Floor 2
                          Los Angeles, CA 90004

Admission       $10.00 per person

If you would like to join us for this masterclass, we recommend reserving your seat as space is limited.  To reserve your seat, please click here and add the item to your cart.  You will be able to enter your contact information and payment information to reserve your seat.

Interested in playing for Ms. Koch? We're searching for five talented players.  To be considered, please click here and complete our performer request form.  We'll need to know your name, contact info, and solo repertoire that you are interested in playing.

About the Artist

Juliana Koch is the principal oboist of the London Symphony Orchestra under Music Director Sir Simon Rattle and laureate of the ARD International Music Competition 2017.