Friday 31 March 2023
for two flutes
This is the opening movement of a flute duet in C minor by the prolific Baroque composer Georg Philipp Telemann. It was first published by Telemann himself in 1727 as part of a collection of 6 flute duets, TWV 40:130-135.
Thursday 30 March 2023
with bass accompaniment
Today we propose the ninth air from Italian flutist Tebaldo Monzani's Twelve Airs as Solos for a German Flute with a Violoncello or Bass Accompaniment, published in London around the year 1800.
Wednesday 29 March 2023
Jig by Roddy Campbell
Today's tune was kindly contributed to our collection by its composer, piper Roddy Campbell from the isle of Barra in the Outer Hebrides, Scotland.
Who was “Dougal the Servitor“?
He was of the Macgregors of Fortingall and Lismore, for ever associated with The Book of The Dean of Lismore, early to mid-16th century. He wrote a genealogy of the Macgregors which traced their descent from the old Celtic monarchs of Scotland.
Tuesday 28 March 2023
from “48 Famous Studies for Oboe or Saxophone”
Today's piece is the eighteenth study from 48 Études pour hautbois ou saxophone, composed around 1835 by German oboist and clarinetist Franz Wilhelm Ferling.
Monday 27 March 2023
by Michael Mandak, for two flutes
Today's piece was kindly contributed to our collection by its composer, Michael Mandak from Graz, Austria. It was written for flutists wishing to alternate the classic works of Telemann, Quantz, Gariboldi etc. with something different and more modern.
Thank you, Michael, for sharing your music with us!
Sunday 26 March 2023
from “Pieces sans basse”
The origins of this piece are not entirely clear. Its earliest known appearance is in Jean-Daniel Braun's Pièces sans basse, published in Paris in 1740 together with his Flute Sonata in E minor. Since they were published as a single volume, the pieces are often attributed to Braun, even though the front page states that they are “by the same author as well as by various others”. And of course, there is no indication anywhere of which pieces were composed by Braun himself. Some recent editions suggest that some of the pieces might even be by Johann Joachim Quantz, but there is hardly any proof of that.
Modern editions also appear to have caused a bit of confusion regarding the original instrumentation of these pieces. The Pièces sans basse were explicitly intended for flute or bassoon (every piece came with two key signatures, one for each instrument). They have however been transposed and republished in several collections for the recorder, and given the popularity of this instrument during the Baroque era, many people now think that versions for the flute are adaptations, when it is actually the other way around.
As if that were not enough, the “Lamentevole” (Italian for plaintive, mournful, or regrettable) has suffered from even more confusion. It has been republished in several collections, with its title corrupted first to “Lamenterole” (an easy mistake to make, considering how close to an r the v looks in the original edition... except that “lamenterole” does not appear to be a word in any language) and then to “Lamentarola” (also not a word, but perhaps someone thought that sounded more Italian?).
Special thanks to Joe for suggesting such an interesting piece!
Saturday 25 March 2023
Traditional Irish jig
The earliest known appearance of this jig is in the second volume of O'Farrell's Pocket Companion for the Irish or Union Pipes , published in London around 1806. It was listed under the title “Calloch a Theusa”, a phonetic version of the Irish Cailleach a' Shúsa meaning “Hag of the Blanket”. The title “Snug in the Blanket” first appears in Francis O'Neill's collection Music of Ireland, published in Chicago in 1903.