Tuesday 1 January 2013

Tune of the Day: O Isis und Osiris

 from Mozart's “The Magic Flute”, arranged for two flutes

This aria is sung by Sarastro at the beginning of Act II of Mozart's famous opera The Magic Flute (Die Zauberflöte), after having explained to the council of priests of Isis and Osiris that he seized Pamina from her mother so that she could be united with Tamino. He plans for the couple to eventually take over from him as rulers of the temple, and praises the gods Isis and Osiris, asking them to protect Tamino and Pamina.

O Isis and Osiris, give
The spirit of wisdom to the new pair.
She who links to her the wanderer's steps,
Strengthens them with patience in danger.

Categories: Arias Classical Opera excerpts Difficulty: easy
Wednesday 2 January 2013

Tune of the Day: Study in F major by Gariboldi

 from “Thirty Easy and Progressive Studies”

Here is another simple melodic étude from Giuseppe Gariboldi's collection of 30 Etudes faciles et progressives.

Categories: Etudes Romantic Written for Flute Difficulty: easy
Thursday 3 January 2013

Tune of the Day: Bože pravde

 National anthem of Serbia

This song, whose title is usually translated into English as “God of Justice”, was originally written in 1872 by composer Davorin Jenko as a piece for the theater play Marko kazuje na kome je carstvo (“Marko names the Emperor”). Its immense popularity with audiences prompted its adoption as the Serbian national anthem.

Thanks to Sarah for suggesting this tune!

Categories: National anthems Difficulty: easy
Friday 4 January 2013

Tune of the Day: Allegro by John Ranish

 from Flute Sonata in D major

This Allegro is the central movement of Sonata No. 6 in D major from John Ranish's XII Solos for the German Flute, Op. 2, first published in London in 1744.

Categories: Baroque Sonatas Written for Flute Difficulty: intermediate
Saturday 5 January 2013

Tune of the Day: Vivace by Telemann

 from “Sonates sans Basse à deux Flutes traverses”

This is the second movement from the third of Telemann's Sonates sans Basse à deux Flutes traverses, ou à deux Violons, ou à deux Flutes à bec, or “Sonatas without Bass for Two Transverse Flutes, or Two Violins, or Two Recorders”.

Categories: Baroque Sonatas Difficulty: intermediate
Sunday 6 January 2013

Tune of the Day: Study in F minor by Andersen

 from “24 Etudes for Flute”

Here is another étude by Danish flutist Joachim Andersen. This Allegro moderato in F minor is study No. 18 from his Twenty-Four Etudes for Flute, Op. 33.

Categories: Etudes Romantic Written for Flute Difficulty: intermediate
Monday 7 January 2013

Tune of the Day: Hobble About

 Traditional Scottish jig

The earliest printing of this Scottish jig seems to be Robert Bremner's 1757 collection Scots Reels, where it appears as “Hoble about”.

Categories: Celtic Music Jigs Traditional/Folk Difficulty: easy
Tuesday 8 January 2013

Tune of the Day: Te voglio bene assaje

 Neapolitan folksong, arranged for flute and piano

This Italian folksong from Naples dates back to at least 1839. The lyrics “Io te voglio bene assaje e tu nun pienze a mme” (“I love you very much and you don't think of me”) are traditionally attributed to poet Raffaele Sacco, while the music was probably composed by Filippo Campanella, although some attribute it to the famous opera composer Gaetano Donizetti. The song was an immediate hit, selling more than 180,000 copies of the sheet music in just a few months.

Categories: Traditional/Folk Difficulty: easy
Wednesday 9 January 2013

Tune of the Day: Largo by Loeillet

 from Sonata for two flutes in G minor

This Largo in B-flat major is the third movement of the fourth sonata from the second book of Belgian composer Jean-Baptiste Loeillet's Six sonatas of two parts, made on purpose for two German flutes, first published in London in 1720.

Categories: Baroque Sonatas Written for Flute Difficulty: easy
Thursday 10 January 2013

Tune of the Day: Study in D major by Gariboldi

 from “Thirty Easy and Progressive Studies”

This is étude No. 8 from Italian Romantic composer Giuseppe Gariboldi's collection of 30 Etudes faciles et progressives.

Categories: Etudes Romantic Written for Flute Difficulty: easy
Friday 11 January 2013

Tune of the Day: The Morning Dew

 Traditional Irish reel

This traditional Irish reel sounds best when played fairly fast. It is in the key of E Dorian, which is like E minor but with an added C# in the key signature.

Categories: Celtic Music Reels Traditional/Folk Difficulty: intermediate
Saturday 12 January 2013

Tune of the Day: Allegro by Albinoni

 from “Trattenimenti armonici”

The joyous Allegro in B-flat major we present today is the second movement of the third Sonata from the Trattenimenti armonici collection by Italian Baroque composer Tomaso Albinoni.

Categories: Baroque Sonatas Difficulty: intermediate
Sunday 13 January 2013

Tune of the Day: Bewahret euch vor Weibertücken

 from Mozart's “The Magic Flute”, arranged for two flutes

This duet is sung by two priests during Act II of Mozart's famous opera Die Zauberflöte (The Magic Flute).

Beware women's artfulness;
This is the first duty of the alliance!
Many a wise man let himself be beguiled,
He was wrong, and knew not the error;
Abandoned he sat, at the end,
His trust repaid with scorn!

Categories: Classical Opera excerpts Difficulty: intermediate
Monday 14 January 2013

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

 from “24 Etudes for Flute”

Here is another étude by Danish flutist Joachim Andersen. This Adagio in E-flat major is study No. 19 from his Twenty-Four Etudes for Flute, Op. 33.

Categories: Etudes Romantic Written for Flute Difficulty: intermediate
Tuesday 15 January 2013

Tune of the Day: Whiskey in the Jar

 Traditional Irish song

This Irish traditional song, also known as “Kilgarry Mountain”, is set in the southern mountains of Ireland, and tells the story of a highwayman who is betrayed by his lover. It is one of the most widely performed traditional Irish songs, and has been recorded by numerous professional artists since the 1950s.

The song first gained wide exposure when the Irish folk band The Dubliners performed it internationally as a signature song, and recorded it on three albums in the 1960s. Building on their success, the Irish rock band Thin Lizzy hit the Irish and British pop charts with the song in the early 1970s. The American metal band Metallica brought it to a wider rock audience in 1998, winning a Grammy for the song in 2000 for Best Hard Rock Performance.

Thanks to Kathleen for suggesting this tune!

Categories: Celtic Music Traditional/Folk Difficulty: intermediate
Wednesday 16 January 2013

Tune of the Day: Allegro by John Ranish

 from Flute Sonata in D major

This Allegro is the closing movement of Sonata No. 6 in D major from John Ranish's XII Solos for the German Flute, Op. 2, first published in London in 1744.

Categories: Baroque Sonatas Written for Flute Difficulty: intermediate
Thursday 17 January 2013

Tune of the Day: Andante by Telemann

 from “Sonates sans Basse à deux Flutes traverses”

This is the third movement from the third of Telemann's Sonates sans Basse à deux Flutes traverses, ou à deux Violons, ou à deux Flutes à bec, or “Sonatas without Bass for Two Transverse Flutes, or Two Violins, or Two Recorders”.

Categories: Baroque Sonatas Difficulty: intermediate
Friday 18 January 2013

Tune of the Day: Study in B-flat major by Gariboldi

 from “Thirty Easy and Progressive Studies”

This Allegro moderato is étude No. 9 from Italian Romantic composer Giuseppe Gariboldi's collection of 30 Etudes faciles et progressives.

Categories: Etudes Romantic Written for Flute Difficulty: easy
Saturday 19 January 2013

Tune of the Day: The Dawning of the Day

 Traditional Irish air

This air is often played as a march, and is one of the first tunes that a student of Irish music will learn. It is not to be confused with the old air of the same name composed by harpist Thomas Connellan in the 17th century.

An Irish-language song, named “Fáinne Geal an Lae” (“The bright ring of the day”), was published in 1847 and later translated into English as “The Dawning of the Day”. The melody was also used by Irish poet Patrick Kavanagh for his poem, "On Raglan Road", which has been performed by a number of notable artists, including The Dubliners, Sinéad O'Connor, Luke Kelly and Mark Knopfler.

Thanks to Dan for suggesting this tune!

Categories: Celtic Music Marches Traditional/Folk Difficulty: easy
Sunday 20 January 2013

Tune of the Day: Adagio by Albinoni

 from “Trattenimenti armonici”

This Adagio in G minor is the third movement of the third Sonata from the Trattenimenti armonici collection by Italian Baroque composer Tomaso Albinoni.

This piece has nothing to do with the well-known Adagio in G minor that was once attributed to Albinoni, but then turned out to be a 20th-century composition.

Categories: Baroque Sonatas Difficulty: easy
Monday 21 January 2013

Tune of the Day: Seid uns zum zweiten Mal wilkommen

 from Mozart's “The Magic Flute”, arranged for two flutes

In its original form, this piece is sung by three boys during Act II of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart's celebrated opera Die Zauberflöte (The Magic Flute). The title translates to English as “Welcome a second time”.

Categories: Classical Opera excerpts Difficulty: intermediate
Tuesday 22 January 2013

Tune of the Day: Study in C minor by Andersen

 from “24 Etudes for Flute”

Here is another étude by Danish flutist Joachim Andersen. This Adagio in C minor is study No. 20 from his Twenty-Four Etudes for Flute, Op. 33.

Categories: Etudes Romantic Written for Flute Difficulty: intermediate
Wednesday 23 January 2013

Tune of the Day: Frazer's Jig

 Traditional Irish jig

This Irish tune is known under various names, including “Paddy from Portlaw”, “Jackson's Drum” and “Thatched Cabin”. Under the simple name “Drum”, it has been attributed to the 18th-century uilleann piper Walker ‘Piper’ Jackson, who was one of the first Irish tune composers to have had their music published.

Categories: Celtic Music Jigs Traditional/Folk Difficulty: easy
Thursday 24 January 2013

Tune of the Day: Adagio by John Ranish

 from Flute Sonata in A minor

This Adagio is the opening movement of Sonata No. 7 in A minor from John Ranish's XII Solos for the German Flute, Op. 2, first published in London in 1744.

Categories: Baroque Sonatas Written for Flute Difficulty: intermediate
Friday 25 January 2013

Tune of the Day: Duet in C major by Köhler

 from “20 Easy and Melodic Studies”

Today's piece is duet No. 2 from the second volume of Ernesto Köhler's Twenty Easy Melodic Progressive Studies.

Categories: Romantic Written for Flute Difficulty: intermediate
Saturday 26 January 2013

Tune of the Day: Study in C major by Gariboldi

 from “Thirty Easy and Progressive Studies”

This is étude No. 10 from Italian Romantic composer Giuseppe Gariboldi's collection of 30 Etudes faciles et progressives.

Categories: Etudes Romantic Written for Flute Difficulty: advanced
Sunday 27 January 2013

Tune of the Day: The Faithful Hussar

 German folk song

This German folk song, presumed to be from 1825, is prominently featured at the end of Stanley Kubrick's 1957 film Paths of Glory, where a female German prisoner, portrayed by Kubrick's later wife Christiane, sings this song in front of French soldiers, stirring strong emotions among them.

A faithful soldier, without fear,
He loved his girl for one whole year,
For one whole year and longer yet,
His love for her, he'd ne'er forget.

Thanks to Steve for suggesting this tune!

Categories: Traditional/Folk Difficulty: easy
Monday 28 January 2013

Tune of the Day: Pastorale for Solo Flute

 by Jeffrey Harrington

Today we are proud to present a new piece for solo flute by contemporary composer Jeffrey Harrington.

Pastorale for Flute is a short piece which turns its folksong-like material into quirky extended passages full of trills and birdsong-like effects.

With its 5/4 time, its lively rhythms and its oriental-sounding melody, we hope this piece will leave you pleasantly surprised!

Categories: Contemporary Written for Flute Difficulty: intermediate
Tuesday 29 January 2013

Tune of the Day: Soll ich dich, Teurer, nicht mehr seh'n?

 from Mozart's “The Magic Flute”, transcribed for two flutes

This piece, whose title could be translated as “Am I to see you no more, my dear one?”, is sung in Act II of Mozart's Die Zauberflöte (The Magic Flute), when Sarastro instructs Pamina and Tamino to bid each other farewell before the greater trials ahead.

Categories: Classical Opera excerpts Difficulty: intermediate
Wednesday 30 January 2013

Tune of the Day: Study in B-flat major by Andersen

 from “24 Etudes for Flute”

Here is another étude in double-tonguing by Danish flutist Joachim Andersen. This Moderato in B-flat major is study No. 21 from his Twenty-Four Etudes for Flute, Op. 33.

Categories: Double tonguing Etudes Romantic Written for Flute Difficulty: intermediate
Thursday 31 January 2013

Tune of the Day: Fair Fanny

 Traditional English dance tune

This melody is unique to London publishers Charles and Samuel Thompson’s Compleat Collection of 200 Favourite Country Dances, vol. 1, published in London in 1757.

Categories: Dance tunes Traditional/Folk Difficulty: easy