Rachmaninoff's Vocalise for Woodwind Quintet
Vocalise, Op. 34, No. 14, composed by Sergei Rachmaninoff and published in 1915, stands as the concluding work of his cycle of fourteen romances for high voice and piano. Distinguished by its complete absence of text, the work employs a single sustained vowel, requiring the performer to sustain long melodic phrases with exceptional breath control and tonal shaping. Despite its origins as a vocal work, Vocalise has attracted numerous transcriptions across diverse instrumental combinations.
In this arrangement, Chaipruck Mekara transcribed the work for Woodwind Quintet (Flute, Oboe, Bb Clarinet, F. Horn, and Bassoon). The opening section entrusts the principal melodic line to the Oboe, whose plaintive timbre closely approximates the quality of the human voice. The Flute subsequently introduces a brighter, more luminous character in the following phrase. The central section assigns the sustained melodic line to the Clarinet, while the concluding section features a lyrical dialogue between Oboe and Flute. Of particular compositional significance is the relationship between the vocal line and the bass line, which engage in meaningful dialogue throughout the work; Mekara consciously brings these gestures to the fore by distributing them between the high voices (Flute, Oboe, Clarinet) and the low voices (F. Horn, Bassoon), supported throughout by their lyrical and countermelodic contributions.
Additional arrangements by Mekara include versions for Clarinet Quintet (3 Bb Clarinets + Bass Clarinet; 3 Alto Clarinets + Bass Clarinet), Trombone Quintet, and various duet combinations including Clarinet Duet, Flute and Clarinet, Oboe and Clarinet, Oboe and Bassoon, and Alto Saxophone and Tenor Saxophone.
