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Finding great
flute CDs
Desert
Island flute CDs ~ Jen's personal list
2008 -
Some great recent finds in flute CDs.
Lorna McGhee's playing is fresh,
lovely, and superb. Her three flute and harp CDs are below. Don't go to
your flutey desert island without them. Unbelievably moving. :>)
Fin
de Siecle by Trio Verlaine
Canada
New Works for Flute and Harp
Taheke
Another great flute CD was brought to
my attention by Trevor Wye. It is the Leipzig
Flute Ensemble: Quintessenz . Check out their new "Tour de
France" CD. Unbelievable. Amazing,. Brilliant, Stunning. I
could listen to the above three albums over and over and over again,
and, honestly, I'm not prone to exaggeration. :>)
From 2002:
Here are some "desert island"
suggestions of great flute CDs in an interesting order to
"discover" them in (with a little explanation of each):
1. Naxos CD No. 8.554166
Dance of the Blessed Spirits
Nora Shulman Flute, Judy Loman Harp
Description: These lovely, slow moving works have been recorded at A440
with the flutist providing a dark, sonorous and full tone colour.
Since it's clearly recorded just above the volume of the harp, there is
a terrific opportunity to hear "legato" playing style, and for
students to learn to play along.
Most of the pieces are in the book: 36 Repertoire Pieces, ed: Donald
Peck They are at a simple enough level that a flutist studying classical
for about three years should have no trouble playing them.
2. Encores William Bennett Flute- Clifford Benson Piano
I second the suggestion of Susan M. who recommended this. Bennett has a
liveliness and a pallet of tone colours that are clearly recorded and
full 'o beans!
The pieces can mostly be found in his "My Favourite Encores"
book, and most are playable by someone studying about 4-5 years
privately.
3. Title: Histoire du Tango Susan Hoeppner Flute- Rachel
Gauk Guitar
Non-classical pieces, that are yet approachable by intermediate flute
students who read music well. The title composition is of course, the
fabulously dance-like work by Piazzolla, and the rest of the album is
"easy-listening" South American music for flute and guitar.
Very fun to jam along with.
Being a Hoeppner fan, I'd also recommend all of her other albums just
for the sheer richness and power in her tone. The only album of hers I
would NOT buy again (tempi too fast) would be "French
Composers".
All others phenomenal.
4. James Galway Title: J.S. Bach Sonatas [RCA Victor]
One of my all-time favourites, whether you like Galway or not, because
of the beautiful balance of cello, harpsichord and flute. I personally
enjoy Galway's interpretation of these lovely classics from the Bach
literature, and suggest that if you want to blow your mind, listen to
cuts 4 thru' 7 first (the E Major Sonata). It's an unbelievably
beautiful piece.
If it turns out you like Bach, there's a second "Galway Bach Vol
II" album with Trio Sonatas on it, including the beautiful G Major
trio sonata. You will also hear flute blending with violin played by the
incomparable Monica Huggett. Buy the sheet music for the G Major and
play along. It's gorgeous!! (Play at A 442)
5. Alexa Still- Flute with String Orchestra
Title: Jacob, Arnold and Musgrave
This contains three major works for flute and strings that are modern
and sonorous.
Still has a smoothness of legato that is unbelievable, and creates an
amazing mood.
If you love the sound of flute backed up by full string orchestra, this
album is incomparable. You want to imitate her smoothness of legato and
ease of large leaps between octaves. Another album of Still's that's
fabulous is the all-Koechlin flute-alone album of "Chants des
Nectaire."
6. Carol Wincenc- Flute
Title: Music of Barber, Copland, Cowell
This is a high-energy album that includes a stompin' hoe-down rendition
of Lukas Foss's "Three American Pieces" as well as Barber's
"Canzone" and Copland's "Duo for Flute and Piano".
What's great about this flutist is her irrepressible energy!!!
Flutists who've studied about 6-7 years would find it fun to play along
with some of the easier works. (although my copy of this is from the LP
and is inexplicably at A 444)
If you can't find the above title, substitute Paula Robison's
"American Masterworks".
7. Ingela Oien-Flute
Title: Great 20th Century Flute Music
Someone else suggested this CD. It's very strongly presented, huge
powerful presence, and very dark and brooding works, spikey and angular.
It contains Dutilleux, Jolivet, Messiaen, Martinu and Mortensen, so
you'll have to enjoy truly complex compositional techniques, but WOW!!
What POWER!
8. James Galway-Flute
Title: Italian Flute Concerti
Beautiful slow mvmts and sparkling fast mvmts. in this Baroque album.
Lovely renderings of heart-breakingly lovely 1700s concerti. Great to
play along with, from the book: "Flute Music of the Baroque"
published by Schirmer.
9. Debra L. Reuter-Pivetta- Flute
Title: Passion and Romance
A very musically precise, very perfect series of performances of
some of the most notey compositions for flute from two historical
periods; from Saint-Saen's Romance and "The Grande Mayonnaise"
(just kidding)
of Boehm, to Bozza's "Image" and my all-time fave-rave 20th
century gypsy-work: Eldin Burton's "Sonatina".
(Catch the finger-action in the third mvmt.!)
This last album would be of great interest to a flutist in their final
years of University-level study.
10. Peter Lukas Graf- Flute. Title: Solos for Flute Alone.
The ambience on the original LP of this is amazing and the flute is
absolutely revealed in it's tone quality.
The interpretations are very deep, especially if you're reading Graf's
book, "Interpretation-Shaping the Melodic Line" at the same
time as listening to this LP, as he uses copious extracts from the
pieces on this album to illustrate his interpretive rules, historical
precedents, and considered interpretive preferences.
But even without the book, some of the pieces are "best ever"
type sound quality.
There's a tremendous version of Marin Marais "Les Folies D'Espagne"
which is the most hypnotically fascinating piece anyway, but Graf plays
it totally alone in a huge cathedral like space, and the resonance,
spinning outward of the sound, and acoustic echo are
unparelled in any other recordings of the Marais that I've heard.
He then plays CPE Bach's A minor Sonata (all the works are
unaccompanied), and does a magnificent job on the interpretation; not
hasty, not too heavy, not too light, not
Baroque-squeaky-cleansed-----but poetic, soulful, and meaningful.
He does a very clean and interesting J.S. Bach A minor unaccompanied
with a nice simple Sarabande but unfortunately he used tape splicing in
the opening (impossible to breathe in) movement.
So have a reality check!!!
Don't think it's YOU, that you can't breathe that much, that fast,
without actually stopping for more breaths.
They've mostly been edited out so no beats are lost.
I would say that his Graf's CD of Flute Alone, issued later, and
re-recorded, is not quite as great as the original LP recording.
But either way, listening to Graf, in addition
to a full read of his book would be the TOTAL teaching tool at the
highest levels of flute playing. And hearing his particular "Les
Folies D'Espagne" will make your YEAR!!
Enthusiastically heading for that island now with these CDs! :>)
Jen Cluff written in 2002
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Where
to buy Flute CDs?
Flute CDs in North America:
1. Fluteworld
Most in one place; catalogue cross-references
by flutist and/or by Composition/Title of piece:
http://www.fluteworld.com
Order a catalogue to see listings at a glance.
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2. Carolyn
Nussbaum
Music Co. Texas, U.S.:
This site pictures the covers of
many great and standard flute CDS:
Go to:
http://www.flute4u.com
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3. Justflutes,
TopWind
and All
Flutes Plus other
European companies
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4. Public Libraries: Looking
for flute CDs in the public library?
Here's a library with a particularly good list of CDs:
Library holdings Flute CDs at UNLV (Nevada, U.S.) Libraries:
http://www.library.unlv.edu/music/info/flutecds.html
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