Solo beginnings

[thefrenchhornguy]

I don't know if this really counts, but Strauss' "Till Eulenspiegel's Merry Pranks" has an extended horn solo very close to the beginnning (it's the 6th bar in not counting the pickup measure). Again, not sure if it really counts.

[allegroamabile]

Hummel: Quod in orbe, Op. 88- timpani

[vinteuil]

WHY ON EARTH IS EVERYONE FORGETTING -
Haydn: Symphony No. 103 (Timpani, of course)

[Melodia]

WHY ON EARTH IS EVERYONE FORGETTING -
Haydn: Symphony No. 103 (Timpani, of course)

Someone already mentioned it.

One that I DO think everyone has forgotten is Dvorak's Scherzo Capriccioso, which begins with a horn.

[vinteuil]

Oops...sorry Lyle. And I think someone mentioned that too, otherwise it really would be a travesty.
Of course:
Varèse: Tuning Up (Oboe)

[thefrenchhornguy]

The first movement of Scheherazade by Rimsky-Korsakov has a violin solo a few bars in.

[Yagan Kiely]

If we are going to mention things with a solo soon into the piece, half of all the concertos from the 1810s to now have a solo near the beginning. A notable piece would be Mozart's Piano Concerto No. 9 as it is one of the first.

[thefrenchhornguy]

Actually I was just mentioning it because I couldn't think of a piece that began with a solo. But yeah, near the beginning works too.
Pieces With Solo Near Beginning
October (oboe) by Eric Whitacre
Scotch Strathspey and Reel (clarinet) by Percy Grainger
The Duke of Marlborough Fanfare (horn) by Percy Grainger (actually this solo does begin the piece)
Entry March of the Boyars (clarinet) by Johan Halvorsen
Spoon River (bass clarinet, in the modern arrangement for wind ensemble) by Percy Grainger
First Suite in E-flat: Intermezzo (oboe or trumpet, depending on conductor preference) by Gustav Holst
Second Suite in F: Fantasia on the Dargason (alto saxophone) by Gustav Holst (this solo actually begins the piece)
Second Suite in F: Song Without Words (clarinet) by Gustav Holst
Symphonic Songs for Band: II. Spiritual (euphonium) by Robert Russell Bennett
Main Theme from Jurassic Park (horn) by John Williams (solo begins the piece)
Raiders March from Indiana Jones (trumpet) by John Williams

And there are a lot more that I don't feel like adding right now...

[vinteuil]

By the way - the Dvorak is "A 2," so it's not a solo - otherwise we could count the opening of the Schubert D. 944.
Shostakovich Symphony No. 15 (Glockenspiel!)

[Notenschreiber]

J.S. Bach: Christmas Oratorio - timpani

[Yagan Kiely]

Raiders March from Indiana Jones (trumpet) by John Williams

That is a solo, but it is not solo.... that was confusing... It's a solo accompanied melody, but it isn't the only instrument playing which (should) be the pieces in this thread.

[allegroamabile]

I think we're losing the integrity of the list's true purpose to name all pieces that begin with one solo instrument.

[vinteuil]

J.S. Bach: Christmas Oratorio - timpani

- Has continuo too.

[horndude77]

Feel free to add/correct the list here: http://imslp.org/wiki/User:Horndude77/Solo_Beginnings.

[allegroamabile]

Not to be a headache or anything, but clarinet comes before viola in Bruch's Concerto for Clarinet, Viola, and Orchestra.