A Is for Oboe: The Orchestra's Alphabet

"It is! When our reviewer sent in her review of this one she said something like ‘this is amazing, you have to listen to it.’ So I grabbed it to listen to and was so impressed with the combination of the authors along with the narrator, Thomas Quasthoff. He’s a Grammy-winning opera singer, and he has such a rich voice. He’s German, and he’s got this deep baritone, and I loved getting to hear him narrate their beautiful words. Plus, it’s told with musical accompaniment throughout the whole story. It’s an alphabet book, so you’re following the alphabet and learning more about orchestras and all the different instruments and concepts that go into making these performances. As you go, you get to hear these selections of music, some that are familiar and some that are less familiar. You can hear what an English horn sounds like and hear the lilting flute after hearing the poem about each. It’s just so beautifully done. I’m sure the picture book is beautiful, but getting to hear the music is a showstopper. Definitely. I know, because we listened to it in the car over and over again. You’re getting to hear a poem about each letter, and the beautiful selections of music. It’s such a great resource, but also just an enjoyable listen. It’s fun, too. The title is A Is for Oboe ; the reason is not necessarily intuitive, so it’s fun to see what each letter stands for. You get to piece it together as you listen and learn a little bit. Definitely. I think younger listeners could listen to it on their own, for sure. But I think it’s fun to listen to together, and I wound up explaining some of the ideas or some of the ways the poems were written to my younger child. Like, for the English horn, he says “he’s melancholy, proud, he’s a philosopher whose velvet truths embrace us with our own unspoken want”. It’s just such interesting poetry! You can pause, or listen to the music and talk through what that means, and about how hearing music can make you feel different emotions. It’s a beautiful listen, and as soon as I heard it, it stood out as a new favourite. Sign up here for our newsletter featuring the best children’s and young adult books, as recommended by authors, teachers, librarians and, of course, kids. I think even younger listeners would have a fun time hearing it, but probably around five or so is when you might have them understanding more of the concepts. It’s a musical piece in addition to an audiobook, so I think anybody would enjoy listening to it."