White Light was commissioned by Fumiko Teramoto, oboist with the Musashino Grand Concert Band from Tokyo, Japan. The request was for a moderately slow piece, of intermediate difficulty, which included White in the title, as this is her lucky colour. Composer Philip Sparke decided to use this suggestion to write a piece that was bright and light in terms of harmony and colour, with much use of simple major and minor chords and an emphasis on pure and transparent timbres. He was also keen to capture the essence and history of the oboe as a solo instrument - the piece is pastoral in character and often almost baroque in style. Duration: 5.45
