Wednesday 20 January 2016
Tune of the Day: Study in A-flat minor by Boehm
from “24 Etudes for solo flute”
This Vivace in A-flat minor (that's right, all 7 flats in the key signature!) is the sixteenth piece from a collection of 24 Etudes for the flute by Theobald Boehm, the German inventor and musician who perfected the modern Western concert flute and improved its fingering system.
Playing in this uncommon key can be an excellent sight-reading exercise, but if you find it too difficult you can easily play the study in the plainer key of A minor. All you have to do is ignoring the flats in the key signature, and shifting all accidentals up a semitone: flats become naturals, naturals become sharps, etc.