I Play Oboe

I think there's something in that perhaps but by my estimation it's common to composers of his era in general. On the third hand, I don't think his later workd lack colour (leaving aside that which was written by Süssmayr)

@Lhayezee Oh I really did not want to criticize Mozart - I mean who am I to judge? "Idomeneo" is my 2nd-favorite opera (2nd only to Gluck's "Alceste").

@helenS Oh I didn't mean to imply I thought you were or anything like that! lol

@SteinbockundLoewe They're actually quite expensive to be honest - even a beginners instrument will tend to be a lot more than a similar-quality flute or clarinet. (One reason I think is that oboes have a conical bore ie it's narrower at the top and gets progressively wider all the way down; a clarinet is a basically cylinder with a wide flared bell just at the bottom). I was lucky in that my dad learned the oboe when he was younger and we had a beginners instrument in the house, lying unused (I had originally wanted to learn the cello instead!)

@AnneHoney Making them is a work of art. Making a bassoon! Figure that out!

I’m glad you found something you enjoy.@helenS

@AnneHoney I still can't say I'm very skilled at making reeds though I can do it. Scraping them for 'fine tuning' is ok, very much an associated art though!