Oedipus2.0099_Schickele

Peter Schickele (1935-2024), a.k.a. P.D.Q. Bach [pseudonym, 1807-1742?], Oedipus Tex, "Dramatic Oratorio or Opera in one Cathartic Act for S.A.T.B. Chorus, Soprano, Mezzo-Soprano, Tenor, and Baritone Soloists, and Orchestra by PDQ Bach Choir" (1990), a parodic Western/baroque oratorio; fills the majority of the album "Oedipus Tex and Other Choral Calamities" (TelArc Records).

Said to be "the oratorio that put Thebes Gulch, Texas on the map" (album notes), the oratorio features musical "instruments" such as the hand-trumpet and down-right silly compositions as "Well, Howdy There! I'm Oedipus Tex. You may have heard of my brother Rex." For good or ill, the tragic lovestory of Oedipus and BillyJo Casta is sort of unforgetable.

P.D.Q. Bach was a fictional classical composer invented by Professor Peter Schickele, a parodic composer and authentic (but humorous) professor of musicology. YouTube makes all parts of the oratorio available: click the link above.