Less about words, more about sounds, musicians and composers, this dialogue is centered around the romantic repertoire of the 1840s. Though relatively few pieces were composed for the oboe in this era, some of the most important pages of music for the instrument were written during this period, such as Robert Schumann’s Romances for oboe and piano, op. 94. He dedicated these to his wife, Clara, who was then inspired to write her Romances for violin and piano, op. 22. Presenting successively the two opuses from the Schumann couple at the same instrument illuminates not only the dialogue between the works, but between the musicians as well. Here, the oboe and the piano converse on equal terms — suggestive of Robert and Clara’s history, which is inherent to the richness of the music. The dialogue begins with a work written by Czech composer and violinist Johann Wenzel Kalliwoda, who, like his contemporaries Schumann and Chopin, composed primarily for the bourgeois salons. His Morceau de salon, op. 228 offers an entertaining music of contrasts adapted to the soirées of the time. Improvisational genius Frederic Chopin (the “Paganini of the piano”) was the master of salon music. His Introduction and polonaise brillante op. 3, originally for piano solo, is presented in an effervescent arrangement in which the virtuosity of the piano and the vocal qualities of the oboe exchange. Though Mathieu Lussier did not live in the 19th century, his Romance for oboe d’amore and piano, op. 29 evokes the sounds of “Romantic” music. The work, which showcases the enchanting timbre of the oboe d’amore, expresses the dialogue between the two instruments in waltz form at the end of the piece. Antonio Pasculli (the “Paganini of the oboe”) devoted his career to developing the technique and fostering the recognition of the soloistic oboe. As he found the repertoire limited, Pasculli wrote a number of variations on well-known opera arias for the instrument, such as the Concerto on themes from Donizetti’s “La Favorita.”