[Listening extract audio not available in printed QP] The full orchestra plays a powerful opening. The solo instrument then enters with a lighter texture. (...

(a) When the soloist enters, the texture becomes thinner and lighter as fewer instruments accompany the soloist. [1]

The opening tutti (full orchestra) passage creates a thick, powerful texture with all instruments playing together. When the soloist enters, most of the orchestra drops out or plays a reduced accompaniment, creating a much more delicate texture. This contrast between the full ensemble (ripieno/tutti) and the lighter solo passages is a fundamental characteristic of the Baroque concerto. The reduced accompaniment allows the soloist's melodic line to be heard clearly above the ensemble and gives the soloist space for virtuosic display.

(b) The correct answer is recorder (also acceptable: oboe, flute, bassoon). [1]

Several Baroque woodwind instruments were featured as concerto soloists. The recorder was popular in the early Baroque, with Vivaldi and Telemann writing notable concertos for it. The oboe was widely used as a solo instrument, particularly by Bach and Handel. The Baroque flute (traverso) also featured in solo concertos, notably by Vivaldi and C.P.E. Bach. The bassoon occasionally appeared as a concerto soloist, particularly in Vivaldi's works (he wrote over 30 bassoon concertos). Each of these instruments offered a distinctive tone colour that contrasted effectively with the string-dominated Baroque orchestra.