The Piccolo & Alto Flute Audition

Commissioned by the sound festival for The Scottish Flute Trio. First performance: November 13 2008. Duff House Banff Scotland. In this work all three players in turn play each of the three instruments - piccolo flute and alto flute - thus giving a contrasted sound to match the character of the four linked movements: hence the title. Sleepy using all three alto flutes begins on the lowest note - G. The mood gradually changes as they introduce higher pitches and faster rhythms as they 'wake up'. In Lyrical a flute introduces the melody which is then shared by a second flute and later by the alto flute. With Mischievous the piccolos arrive on the scene. The first oneincites another piccolo and then the flute to join in. The tempo quickens and after a brief climax the mood quietens leading to Peaceful. In this last movement all three instruments are played. In turn they present a lyrical melody but in different keys so as to suit their individual tessituras.

Picc/5Flutes/Alto/Bass. Par MOZART WOLFGANG AMADEUS. A lovely arrangement of a favorite opera overture. Instrumentation: Piccolo (doubles on C Flutes), 5 C Flutes, Alto Flute, Bass Flute/ Répertoire / Ensemble de Flûtes Traversières

The solo group consists of a sextet of the woodwind instruments which are normally doubled with more regular members of the orchestra: these six strangers now brought to the fore are piccolo alto flute cor anglais clarinet inEb bass clarinet in Bb and contrabassoon. They make a motley group diverse in colour as in register and one of the tasks of the piece sets itself is to have them blend and cohere both together as an ensemble and in partnershipwith the string orchestra (which itself is used with unusual variety and subtlety). Another evident task of the work is to provide fine solos for each member of the woodwind sextet: bright dances for the piccolo recitativesfor the alto flute a stoical song from the contrabassoon in the extreme bass. The work is cast as a single movement which begins in the composer's first-movement style of rapid regeneration. This is interrupted by slowinterventions including one for divided strings which gives rise to a sextuple cadenza for the soloists. Out of this comes a slow movement or sequence of short slow movements followed by a dancing finale with its own slowepisodes. Altogether this is music of songs and dances heavily tinged with Scottish rhythms and tonalities: one might think of a magic bagpipe having six chanters and a drone of variegated string texture.

Beethoven: Symphony No. 5 (1st movement and coda) Bizet: Prelude to Carmen and Offenbach: Can-Can (from 'Orpheus in the Underworld'). Score with parts for Piccolo Flutes 1 (div.) Flutes 2 (div.) Alto Flute and Bass Flute.

First performance by the Nash Ensemble (Philippa Davies alto flute/piccolo Lawrence Power viola andLucy Wakeford harp) on 12th July 2004 at the Pittville Pump Room Cheltenham as part of the CheltenhamInternational MusicFestival.