This is étude No. 13 from Italian flutist and composer Giuseppe Gariboldi's Twenty Studies, Op. 132. Make sure to play sixteenth notes shorter than eighth notes in triplets.
This traditional hornpipe in A major is known under different names, such as “Kay's Hornpipe”. In Ireland it is known as “The Pet of the House”, while in America it sometimes goes by the title “Once Upon My Cheek”.
This piece was originally a chorus from André Grétry's 1776 opera Les mariages samnites (The Samnite Marriages), sung in Act I by a group of young girls. The theme is well known to pianists because of a set of variations composed by Mozart in 1781.
Thanks to Doug for suggesting this tune!
This is duet No. 2 from the first volume of Twenty Easy Melodic Progressive Studies by Italian Romantic composer Ernesto Köhler. The lower voice was originally intended to be played by a teacher, but unlike other duets from the same collection it is not hard to play.
This Allemande is the second movement of Johann Sebastian Bach's Suite No. 5 for unaccompanied cello. Its mournfulness is reminiscent of the allemande from the Cello Suite in D minor, but it features richer, denser chording.
As Paddy Moloney of the Chieftains said, this “is surely one of the finest songs of emigration in our tradition and many versions of it abound”. The tune is generally thought to have Ulster origins, although at least one version of the lyrics has the emigrant bidding farewell to County Wicklow in the East or Ireland. The earliest published version is to be found in a 19th century collection. American fiddler John Hartford believed the tune is a cousin to “Speed the Plow”.
This overture in the French style begins and closes Georg Philipp Telemann's Suite in A minor for Recorder and Strings. Its opening slow section features the long-short snap rhythm prominently, and has a processional feel about it. The tempo soon rushes forward with a new theme, introduced in the strings; the flute then elaborates upon this theme, supported by a bare violin line or by the bass.
Thanks to Tim for suggesting this piece!
In the middle of Act I of Mozart's Le nozze di Figaro, Marcellina and Susanna share this brilliant exchange of very politely delivered sarcastic insults. In the end, Susanna triumphs by congratulating Marcellina on her impressive age, and the older woman departs in a fury.
Here is étude No. 14 from Italian flutist and composer Giuseppe Gariboldi's Twenty Studies, Op. 132. It is marked “scherzando”, an Italian term that literally means “joking”; therefore, this study should be played in a very brilliant style, and at a fast tempo.
This song was first collected in 1930 by the British folksong collector Maud Karpeles. The tune was so beautiful, Miss Karpeles felt it must have come from Britain, but it is actually highly likely that “She's like the Swallow” originated in Newfoundland.
She's like the swallow that flies so high,
She's like the river that never runs dry,
She's like the sun that shines on the lee shore
She loves her love, but love is no more.
Thanks to Dan for suggesting this tune!
Here is the fifth and last movement of Benedetto Marcello's seventh Sonata for recorder or flute. This short minuet is based on a simple rhythmic pattern that repeats throughout the two parts of the piece.
This is the first movement of Georg Philipp Telemann's Canonic Sonata No. 2 for two flutes, although it was published as Sonata No. 6 in at least one collection. As with all canons, both players can play from the same part.
This 3/2-time courante constitutes the third movement of Johann Sebastian Bach's fifth Suite for Unaccompanied Cello. It is exceptional as it is a courante in the French style, rather than in the Italian form found in the other five cello suites.
Sir Roger de Coverly was the name of a rakish character in popular English literature in the early 18th century. He was supposedly a country squire from Worcestershire, and a member of a small club which ran the popular newspaper The Spectator that appeared daily from 1711 to 1712, and his grandfather was said to have invented the dance that went by his name. What is revealing about this is that “Roger of Coverly” was already considered an old dance at the time the paper was published.
“Roger of Coverly” has had a long history in English country dance, retaining its popularity almost until the present-day. In New England the contra dance “The Virginia Reel” was often danced to this tune, though other tunes were also substituted.
The tune is mentioned in Charles Dickens' A Christmas Carol when the Ghost of Christmas Past shows Scrooge a party from his apprenticeship with Mr. Fezziwig:
[...] the great effect of the evening came after the Roast and Boiled, when a fiddler (an artful dog, mind—the sort who knew his business better than you or I could have told it him!) struck up “Sir Roger de Coverley.” Then old Fezziwig stood out to dance with Mrs. Fezziwig.
This piece is taken from Schumann's Album for the Young (Album für die Jugend), a masterful set of 43 short, easy piano pieces. The “Happy Farmer, Returning from Work” is one of the most popular pieces in the collection, probably because of the joy and innocence it exudes.
Thanks to Małgorzata from Poland for suggesting this piece!
This binary-form Vivace in D major opens the first of Belgian Baroque composer Jean-Baptiste Loeillet's Six sonatas of two parts, made on purpose for two German flutes, first published in London in 1720.
This 2/4-time Allegro in E major is the fifteenth and last study in the first volume of Ernesto Köhler's Progress in Flute Playing. It mostly consists of slurred sixteenth notes, so a good articulation can really make the difference here.
This D-major Irish polka is a favorite of banjo players. It is known under different names, such as “Jack Mitchell's Polka”, “Jerome Burke's Polka” and “The Newmarket Polka”.
This fast and sharply-accented bourrée from Bach's first partita for solo violin carries the rather rare Italian indication “Tempo di Borea” in the original manuscript.
Thanks to Kelvin from Mexico for suggesting this piece!
Here is another piece from the first volume of La scuola del flauto (The School of the Flute) by Luigi Hugues. This duet prominently features some long chromatic passages.
Thanks to Paolo for contributing this duet!
Today's piece is étude No. 15 from Italian flutist and composer Giuseppe Gariboldi's Twenty Studies, Op. 132.
This melody was composed by the English dancing master Nathaniel Kynaston (1683-1757). Although very little is known about him, Kynaston appears to have been active from 1705 to about 1722 in the Shropshire/Wales border area, publishing over 120 tunes and dances. “Young Damon's Flight” appears in his Second Book of the Compleat Country Dancing Master, published in 1719.
This spirited Giga is the closing movement of Sonata No. 3 in B minor from John Ranish's XII Solos for the German Flute, Op. 2, first published in London in 1744.
Thanks to Monique for suggesting this piece!
This ternary-form “Affettuoso e poco vivace” (affectionate and a bit lively) in D major constitutes the second movement of Jean-Baptiste Loeillet's Six sonatas of two parts, made on purpose for two German flutes, composed in 1720.
The Sarabande from Bach's fifth Cello Suite is the second of only four movements in all six suites that doesn't contain any chords. The famous Russian cellist Mstislav Rostropovich described it as the essence of Bach's genius.
Yo-Yo Ma played this movement on September 11, 2002 at the site of the World Trade Center, while the first of the names of the dead were read in remembrance on the first anniversary of the attack.
This tune was composed by William Marshall, a Scottish fiddler most famous for his many fine strathspeys. Marshall worked for much of his life for the Duke of Gordon as the Steward of his Household, and it is fortunate that the Duke was an enthusiastic supporter and patron of Marshall's music. The title refers to the House of Cluny, where George Gordon of Buckie lived in the 18th century.
Ludwig van Beethoven composed this Minuet in G major around 1796. It was originally written for orchestra, but the original setting is now lost, and only an arrangement for piano has survived. Its elegant main theme, one of the composer's most memorable early melodies, demonstrates his skill at fashioning attractive light music.
Thanks to Małgorzata from Poland for suggesting this piece!
This Allegro in D major is the third movement of the first of Jean-Baptiste Loeillet's Six sonatas of two parts, made on purpose for two German flutes, composed in 1720.
This is étude No. 16 from Italian flutist and composer Giuseppe Gariboldi's Twenty Studies, Op. 132. It is marked “un poco mosso ma sempre cantabile”, which translates to “a little agitated but always songful”.