It was in the last year of Camille Saint-Saëns’ life that he conceived the idea of writing a sonata for each woodwind instrument. He had written the Oboe Sonata and the Clarinet Sonata prior to writing the Bassoon Sonata. The Bassoon Sonata in G major Op. 168 was written for Léon Letellier, the first bassoon of the Paris Opéra and the Société des Concerts. It was the last work Saint-Saens wrote in his lifetime. He had intended on writing a sonata for flute and english horn, but he died before he was able to complete the project. Ratner calls the Bassoon Sonata “a model of transparency, vitality and lightness”. I am joined alongside pianist, Joseph Hauer, playing the first movement of the Bassoon Sonata.
