Franz Doppler's L'oiseau des bois ("The Bird in the Woods") is a wonderful example of the composer's virtuosic ease and stylistic programmaticism. Originally scored for a quartet of French horns, the accompaniment encapsulates the wisdom of an ancient forest. As gentle sunlight leaks through the gnarled branches, a lone songbird appears in the form of the flute. The chorale pauses as the woods seem to hold their very breath, just for a moment, before she joins their harmony in warbling virtuosity. Laden with sweet-tempered trills, flighty scales and runs, and the occasional chirping arpeggio, L'oiseau des bois brings to life the bucolic nostalgia of nature's music through the whimsical character of the composer's favorite instrument.

In collaboriation with Junko Nojima.
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