Wednesday 1 July 2026

Tune of the Day: Andante by Scherer

 from Flute Trio No. 2

This is the second movement of a Sonata in E written for three German flutes by Johann Scherer, a German composer of the 18th century.

Thanks to Joyce Kai for contributing this piece!

Categories: Classical Written for Flute Difficulty: easy
Thursday 2 July 2026

Tune of the Day: The Spinning Wheel

 from Köhler's “25 Romantic Studies”

Today we propose étude No. 15 from Italian flutist and composer Ernesto Köhler's 25 Romantic Studies, Op. 66. You should give the impression that this piece is played by two flutists, one playing the melodic phrase and the other playing the accompaniment.

Categories: Etudes Romantic Written for Flute Difficulty: intermediate
Friday 3 July 2026

Tune of the Day: Give Us a Drink of Water

 Traditional Irish slip jig

The earliest appearance of this slip jig is in Chicago Police captain Francis O'Neill's collection Music of Ireland, published in 1903. Quite suitably, the tune is also known as “There is No Milk in the House”.

Categories: Jigs Traditional/Folk Difficulty: easy
Saturday 4 July 2026

Tune of the Day: Finale from The Carnival of the Animals

 by Camille Saint-Saëns, arranged for solo flute

As the name says, this fourteenth movement is the grand finale of Saint-Saëns's most famous work, Le Carnaval des Animaux. This piece can be heard in the animated Disney film Fantasia 2000, in which a flock of flamingos is annoyed by another flamingo playing with a yo-yo and attempt to make him fall into step with their dance routines. It is important to observe that, although the melody of the Finale is relatively simple, the supporting harmonies which show up in the original arrangement are heavily ornamented with dazzling scales, glissandi and trills.

Thanks to Luis for suggesting this piece!

Categories: Romantic Difficulty: intermediate
Sunday 5 July 2026

Tune of the Day: Duet in B minor by Hugues

 from “School of Flute”

This is the fourth 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!

Categories: Romantic Written for Flute Difficulty: intermediate
Monday 6 July 2026

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

 from “30 Caprices for Flute Solo”

This piece, to be played “a little bit agitated, but well-phrased”, is the twenty-seventh étude from Sigfried Karg-Elert's 30 Caprices: a “Gradus ad Parnassum” of the modern technique for flute solo.

Categories: 20th century Etudes Written for Flute Difficulty: advanced
Tuesday 7 July 2026

Tune of the Day: My Mind Will Never Be “Aisy”

 Traditional Irish slip jig

This 9/8-time jig is taken from O'Neill's collection The Dance Music of Ireland, published in Chicago in 1907. “Aisy” is just an old form of the word “easy”, still used by a lot of people in Ireland.

The tune is almost certainly a descendant of a Scottish air and dance tune known as “Woo'd and Married and a'”, dating back to the early 18th century.

Categories: Jigs Traditional/Folk Difficulty: easy
Wednesday 8 July 2026

Tune of the Day: Allegro

 from Sonata in C major by George Frideric Handel

The second movement of Handel's Sonata in C major for recorder and continuo is in 3/8 time. With its 132 bars, it is among the longest movements of the Opus 1 sonatas.

Categories: Baroque Sonatas Difficulty: intermediate
Thursday 9 July 2026

Tune of the Day: Allegro by Scherer

 from Flute Trio No. 2

This Allegro in E minor is the third movement of the second Sonata for three flutes by Johann Scherer.

Thanks to Joyce Kai for contributing this piece!

Categories: Classical Written for Flute Difficulty: intermediate
Friday 10 July 2026

Tune of the Day: Study in D major by Kummer

 from “32 Etudes amusantes et instructives”

This is the very first study from German flutist and composer Caspar Kummer's 32 Etudes amusantes et instructives, Op. 129, first published in 1858.

Categories: Classical Etudes Written for Flute Difficulty: intermediate
Saturday 11 July 2026

Tune of the Day: The Fox Hunters' Jig

 Traditional Irish slip jig

Many versions of this old slip jig exist, with the earliest record being in Hime's Collection of Favorite Country Dances for the Present Year 1799 (Dublin, 1799). The version we present today is taken from Francis O'Neill's The Dance Music of Ireland, published in Chicago in 1907.

Categories: Jigs Traditional/Folk Difficulty: easy
Sunday 12 July 2026

Tune of the Day: Florentine March

 by Julius Fučík, arranged for solo flute

Although Czech composer Julius Fučík is best known for his march “Entrance of the Gladiators”, his real signature piece is this “Florentine March”, written during the composer's long stint as leader of the Royal and Imperial Army's military band. It's a happy, spirited piece in the vein of Johann Strauss's Radetzky March, and a standard selection on concerts of light band and orchestral music. The piece was composed in 1900 as a grand march for an opera never completed. Its original title was “La Rosa di Toscana” (“The Rose of Tuscany”), which was an appellation of the Tuscan city of Florence.

Thanks to Ines for suggesting this piece!

Categories: Marches Difficulty: intermediate
Monday 13 July 2026

Tune of the Day: Vivace by Loeillet

 from Sonata for two flutes in G minor

This Vivace in G minor opens the fourth of Belgian Baroque composer Jean-Baptiste Loeillet's second book of 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: intermediate
Tuesday 14 July 2026

Tune of the Day: Study in F-sharp major by Karg-Elert

 from “30 Caprices for Flute Solo”

This “very fast, sparkling” piece is the twenty-ninth étude from Sigfried Karg-Elert's 30 Caprices: a “Gradus ad Parnassum” of the modern technique for flute solo.

Categories: 20th century Etudes Written for Flute Difficulty: advanced