This jig is taken from the 1922 collection Waifs and Strays of Gaelic Melody by Francis O'Neill, who cites as a source for the tune the Rice-Walsh manuscript, a collection of music from the repertoire of Jeremiah Breen, a blind Irish fiddler, notated by his student.
This “Sacred March” is taken from Act I, Scene 3 of Christoph Willibald Gluck's 1767 opera Alceste.
We think it has a somewhat Christmassy sound to it, so we deemed it appropriate to post it now. Many people have also chosen to play this march as a wedding processional, and it is indeed a valid alternative to the traditional Bridal Chorus (“Here Comes the Bride”) by Wagner.
Thanks to Marcello for suggesting this piece!
This pair of minuets constitutes the closing movement of the third of Jacques-Christophe Naudot's 6 Babioles pour 2 Vieles, Musettes, Flutes-a-bec, Flutes traversieres, Haubois, ou Violons, sans Basse. The French term babiole humbly indicates something of little value or importance, a trifle.
The 9/8-time Andantino in F-sharp major we present today is the thirteenth piece from Danish flutist and composer Joachim Andersen's Twenty-Four Etudes for Flute, Op. 30.
This jig appears in Harding's All-Round Collection of Jigs, Reels and Country Dances, published in New York in 1905. It was originally an air composed by Dublin-born tenor Michael Kelly for Henry Siddons's 1807 comedy Time's a Tell-tale. The song was popular and appears in collections and song-sheets on both sides of the Atlantic through the mid-19th century.
This Vivace is the sixth movement, and fifth “aria”, of Georg Philipp Telemann's Partita No. 3 in C minor, TWV 41:c1, originally published in 1716 as part of the Kleine Kammermusik (“little chamber music”) collection. The original edition indicates that the melody is intended to be played by an oboe, a violin, or a flute.
This flute duet is taken from Blake's Young Flutist's Magazine, published in 1833. The tune is that of Zerline's celebrated aria from Act I of Daniel Auber's 1830 opera Fra Diavolo, ou L'hôtellerie de Terracine. The original French lyrics start with “Voyez sur cette roche”, but the Italian (“Quell'uom dal fiero aspetto”) and English (“On yonder rock reclining”) translations are also well known.
The aria makes a notable appearance in the 1933 Laurel and Hardy film The Devil's Brothers (a.k.a. Bogus Bandits), based on Auber's opera.
This Allegro is taken from the fourth part of the Méthode pour la flûte by French Romantic flutist and composer Louis Drouet, published in Paris in 1828.
This reel is taken from Harding's All Round Collection, published in 1905. The second part is oddly composed of just six measures, and was probably based on the chorus of the famous song strain “Whiskey in the Jar”.
Today we present a melodic transcription of the third movement of Ludwig van Beethoven's Symphony No. 6 in F major, Op. 68, also known as the Pastoral Symphony.
Beethoven was a lover of nature who spent a great deal of his time on walks in the country. He also frequently left Vienna to work in rural locations. Each of the Symphony's five movements (yes, five, not the four typical of Classical symphonies) was annotated with a title evocative of the countryside. The third movement, a scherzo, carries the title “Lustiges Zusammensein der Landleute”, which means “Merry gathering of country folk”, and aptly depicts country folk dancing and revelling. It ends abruptly on an imperfect cadence, leading without a pause into the fourth movement, titled “Thunder, Storm”.
Thanks to Kaitlyn for suggesting this piece!
This “gracious” piece constitutes the opening movement of the fourth of Jacques-Christophe Naudot's 6 Babioles pour 2 Vieles, Musettes, Flutes-a-bec, Flutes traversieres, Haubois, ou Violons, sans Basse. The French term babiole humbly indicates something of little value or importance, a trifle.
The animated cut-time Moderato in D-sharp minor we present today is the fourteenth piece from Danish flutist and composer Joachim Andersen's Twenty-Four Etudes for Flute, Op. 30.
This jig appears in O'Farrell's Pocket Companion for the Irish or Union Pipes, published circa 1810. It is known under several different titles, including “Apples in Winter”, “Gillan's Apples” and “Jackson's Growling Cat”. The Jackson mentioned in the title is almost certainly the 18th-century Irish gentleman-composer Walker “Piper” Jackson.
This “Allegro assai” in rondo form is the final movement of the third of 5 Divertimentos for three basset horns composed by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart between 1783 and 1785. These pieces were later rearranged for solo piano and published as the Six Viennese Sonatinas, which is why this piece is also known as the Allegro from Sonatina No. 4.
Haydn's Symphony No. 100 is nicknamed “Military” because of its second movement, which features prominent fanfares written for trumpets and percussion effects. After the 1794 premiere, one reviewer wrote that the second movement evoked the “hellish roar of war increasing to a climax of horrid sublimity!”
The present arrangement for two flutes of the second movement's melody is taken from Blake's Young Flutist's Magazine, published in 1833.
Today's piece is the twelfth study from the fourth part of the Méthode pour la flûte by French Romantic flutist and composer Louis Drouet, published in Paris in 1828.
This English folk song is one of many “counting” Christmas carols, and in this aspect it is similar to the more famous “The Twelve Days of Christmas”. It is cumulative in structure, with each stanza built up from the previous one by adding a new verse.
I'll sing you one, O
Green grow the rushes, O
What is your one, O?
One is one and all alone
And evermore shall be so.
“Green Grow the Rushes, O” is the Regimental Song of the 3rd United States Cavalry, currently stationed at Fort Hood, Texas. The phrase “Green grow” is purported to be the origin of the slang term “Gringo”, resulting from the Regiment of Mounted Rifles having sung their song all over the populated areas of Mexico while campaigning there in 1847.
This song is not to be confused with Robert Burns's similarly titled “Green Grow the Rashes”, which is of Scottish origin!
Today we present an arrangement for flute and piano of the central slow movement of Antonio Vivaldi's Recorder Concerto in C minor, RV 441. Originally scored for recorder and strings, this Largo features at its heart a gorgeous solo.
Thanks to Andrea for suggesting this piece!
These two villageoises (which literally means ‛villagers’ in French, or, as an adjective, ‛rustic’) constitute the second movement of the fourth of Jacques-Christophe Naudot's 6 Babioles pour 2 Vieles, Musettes, Flutes-a-bec, Flutes traversieres, Haubois, ou Violons, sans Basse. The French term babiole humbly indicates something of little value or importance, a trifle.
The 9/8-time Andante in D-flat major we present today is the fifteenth piece from Danish flutist and composer Joachim Andersen's Twenty-Four Etudes for Flute, Op. 30.
“Murphy's Weather Eye” was an early-19th-century song. It appeared in print as early as 1832 in Hodgson's National Songster.
Murphy hath a weather eye;
He can tell whene'er he pleases,
If it will be wet or dry,
When 'twill thaw, and when it freezes.
A distanced version of this jig is known to Cape Breton fiddlers under the same title “Murphy's Weather Eye”, but also as "An Inverness Jig", referring to the Canadian county of Inverness, Nova Scotia.
This courante is the second movement of French Baroque composer Jean-Marie Leclair's Sonata for violin or flute and continuo in C major, Op. 1 No. 2. The first edition of this sonata was published in Paris around 1723.
Thanks to Marian for suggesting this piece!
This flute duet appears in Blake's Young Flutist's Magazine, published in 1833. The melody is from one of George Frideric Handel's most famous choruses, “See the Conq'ring Hero Comes”, which was originally penned for the 1747 oratorio Joshua. It was an immensely popular number, and Handel soon added it to Judas Maccabaeus, which had premiered the season before. The chorus is more often thought of in connection with that oratorio because of its relatively greater fame.
This Allegro Moderato is taken from the fourth part of the Méthode pour la flûte by French Romantic flutist and composer Louis Drouet, published in Paris in 1828.
This jig, probably of American origin, is taken from Harding's All-Round Collection of Jigs, Reels and Country Dances, published in New York in 1905.
This Presto is the seventh movement, and sixth “aria”, of Georg Philipp Telemann's Partita No. 3 in C minor, TWV 41:c1, originally published in 1716 as part of the Kleine Kammermusik (“little chamber music”) collection. The original edition indicates that the melody is intended to be played by an oboe, a violin, or a flute.
This Musette is the third movement of the fourth of Jacques-Christophe Naudot's 6 Babioles pour 2 Vieles, Musettes, Flutes-a-bec, Flutes traversieres, Haubois, ou Violons, sans Basse. The French word babiole humbly indicates something of little value or importance, a trifle.
The Allegretto in B-flat minor we present today is the sixteenth piece from Danish flutist and composer Joachim Andersen's Twenty-Four Etudes for Flute, Op. 30.
The first strain of this old air is said to have appeared in the now lost Straloch lute manuscript as early as 1627; by the 1760s, when the whole tune was printed in Neil Stewart's Reels and in the Gillespie Manuscript of Perth, it was already considered ancient.
The “Green Grow the Rashes” title is from Scotland national poet Robert Burns's reworking of the poem sung to a tune called “The Grant's Rant”.
This tune is often confused with the similarly titled “Green Grow the Rushes, O”, which is commonly sung as a Christmas carol. They are, however, totally distinct.
Today we propose a version for solo flute of the beautiful closing Rondo from Carl Stamitz's Clarinet Concerto No. 3 in B-flat major.
Thanks to Julie for contributing this transcription!
Today's piece, a “Tyrolean duet” for two flutes, is taken from Blake's Young Flutist's Magazine, published in Philadelphia in 1833.
Unfortunately we were unable to track the exact origins of this melody, but we suspect that it was adapted from a Romantic-era piece. If you recognize the tune, please let us know!