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When Gillet composed the Studies in the early part of this century, it was to help his students to be prepared to meet the difficulties being encountered in the new music of the time. Many of the compositions of Debussy, Ravel and Dukas with their increased use of the upper register of the oboe, contain passages which present a challenge to this day. As Gillet says in his dedication:

"The studies given heretofore in my class are old in form although they possess real value, but they no longer meet the requirements of the perfecting work that the continuous progress of modern music calls for."

If during the first part of this century many oboists entered the professional field without a thorough preparation of the Gillet Studies, now eighty years after their appearance, we have long since reached a point where they must be considered an integral part of every student's program of study.