Antonio Pasculli was among the most distinguished oboists of his generation.
In 1860 he was made professor of oboe and cor anglais at the Palermo Conservatory at the age of eighteen.
His phenomenal ability as a performer is displayed in the dazzling operatic fantasias he wrote for his instrument, weaving melodies of well known operas into compositions that call for challenging feats of virtuosity.
“Pasculli composed in a way that had the notes coming so fast and so furiously in arpeggios and staccato scales (in very extreme tempos, at that) that no room was made for the soloist to take a breath… It must be said that these works are not merely designed to display prolixity. Pasculli never forgets that these are basically songs and allows both the oboe and piano room to cajole and delight.” Classics Today
