Free Flute Sheet Music

Tune of the Day: Allegro by Scherer

This is the first movement of the second Sonata for three flutes by Johann Scherer.

Thanks to Joyce Kai for contributing this piece!

Tune of the Day: Larghetto

Here is the third of the five movements of Handel's Recorder Sonata in C major. It is not to be confused with the first movement, which is also marked “Larghetto”. This piece features a very clear and simple melody, and is excellent for experimenting with Baroque ornamentation.

Tune of the Day: The Humors of Ballymanus

This 9/8-time jig made its first appearance in O'Farrell's Pocket Companion for the Irish or Union Pipes, published in London around 1805.

Ballymanus is a town in County Wicklow, Ireland, and was the birthplace in 1775 of William Byrne, the famous “Billy Byrne of Ballymanus”, a leader of Wicklow men in the Rebellion of 1798 against the British.

Tune of the Day: Study in E-flat major by Karg-Elert

This 7/16-time piece, to be played as fast as possible, is the twenty-fourth étude from Sigfried Karg-Elert's 30 Caprices: a “Gradus ad Parnassum” of the modern technique for flute solo.

Tune of the Day: Duet in G major by Hugues

Here is the second duet from La scuola del flauto (The School of the Flute) by Italian composer and arranger Luigi Hugues.

Thanks to Paolo for contributing this piece!

Tune of the Day: A Baroque Rondeau

This Rondeau for solo flute is taken from Michel Blavet's Premier recueil de pièces (“First collection of pieces”). As you have probably already guessed, this piece is in rondeau (or rondo) form, that is, it is made up of a refrain and a number of episodes (only two in this case, but there could have been more). During performance, the principal theme of the refrain (A) alternates with the episodes (B, C, etc.), creating an ABACA pattern. For obvious reasons, the refrain appears only once in the sheet music, so it's up to the performer to play the various sections in the right order.

Tune of the Day: The Rakes of Westmeath

This is quite an old tune, dating back at least to the first half of the 18th century. Under the title “The Rakes of Westmeath”, it appears in several collections from that era, the earliest being Burk Thumoth's 12 English and 12 Irish Airs (London, 1746).

Westmeath is the name of a county in central Ireland, now part of the Eastern and Midland Region.