Octoot (S.8) for Wind Instruments

For Wind Instruments: 2 Flutes, 2 Oboes, 2 Bb Clarinets, 2 Bassoons

One of the most peripherally important people in P.D.Q. Bach's life was a nobleman from Normandy named Count Pointercount.  It was he who introduced the inert composer to the music of Purcell and the English madrigalists, as well as to the delightful world of French folk songs, which are as numerous as they are delightful and French.  The song used by P.D.Q. in the fourth movement of this work is a typical example of the Gallic popular muse's output, dealing as it does with a man who is in love with a woman who is in love with another man who is in love with another woman who is in love with a large Afghan rug.

The headings of the five movements (I. Vite, tout de suite, II. Lent, tout au moins, III. Minuet et, tout a l'heure, trio, IV. Chanson: “Toute l'annee, hey, hey, hey,” V. Tout a coup le bout) may be translated as follows:

I.    Fast, right away

II.   Slow, at least

III.  Minuet and, presently, trio

IV.   Song: “All year long, hey, hey, hey”

V.    All of a sudden the end