Bass or Contrabass Flute

Carla Rees presents this arrangement of the Bach Cello Suites for solo bass flute.

Arrangements of one kind or another have been at the heart of bass flute repertoire since Boehm's own arrangements of well-known works at the time of the instrument's development in the mid 1850s. For an instrument that lacks its own repertoire before the mid nineteenth century, adapting earlier works provides both useful practice material and a broader range of musical material.

This adaptation of the Cello Suites, by Carla Rees, is formed from studying various printed sources, including facsimiles of the four versions of the composer s manuscript, with slight modifications made to suit a single line instrument and the idiosyncrasies of the bass flute. Articulations are based on those found in the source material, but may be altered to suit the interpretation and requirements of the individual player, as is commonly the case with performances by different cellists. Double stopping has been represented by grace notes, which may be allowed more time or omitted altogether depending on the skill and tastes of the performer. Where two notes appear simultaneously in the score, this is to indicate a possible ossia for instruments with a B footjoint, and players of the standard bass flute should always follow the upper notes.

For advanced players.

Carla Rees presents this arrangement of the Bach Cello Suites for solo bass flute.

Arrangements of one kind or another have been at the heart of bass flute repertoire since Boehm's own arrangements of well-known works at the time of the instrument's development in the mid 1850s. For an instrument that lacks its own repertoire before the mid nineteenth century, adapting earlier works provides both useful practice material and a broader range of musical material.

This adaptation of the Cello Suites, by Carla Rees, is formed from studying various printed sources, including facsimiles of the four versions of the composer s manuscript, with slight modifications made to suit a single line instrument and the idiosyncrasies of the bass flute. Articulations are based on those found in the source material, but may be altered to suit the interpretation and requirements of the individual player, as is commonly the case with performances by different cellists. Double stopping has been represented by grace notes, which may be allowed more time or omitted altogether depending on the skill and tastes of the performer. Where two notes appear simultaneously in the score, this is to indicate a possible ossia for instruments with a B footjoint, and players of the standard bass flute should always follow the upper notes.

For advanced players.

Based on an Armenian troubadour song, I WILL NOT BE SAD IN THIS WORLD is a uniquely beautiful work for alto flute (or bass flute) accompanied by a pre-recorded audio track made purely from the composer’s own singing. The result is a fluid interplay between the live flute and the composer’s multi-tracked and processed vocal sonorities. The work was created for Marya Martin’s Eight Visions collection (published by Presser), and is now available as a single publication.

Please note this publication includes a score only and no separate flute part.

Alain Besson presents Ecrits sur le Souffle, for bass flute and narrator.

Paul Claudel said of his Cent phrases pour eventail that they were written on the wind and that every poet dreams of holding the world in a small formula . The work of Chinese and Japanese poets suggested to him the idea of making poetic pictures, by having fun with the parts of an expressive phrase, by cutting the words: leave to each word, the space the time necessary for its full reality, to its dilation in the white space. These writings are inspired by these poems and constitute an imaginary musical extension of this idea. The bass flute has been exploited to the limits of its possibilities and registers by proposing a varied and contrasted universe. Each piece develops a microcosm, a climate of the game modes suggested by each poem.

Duration: 12 . For the advanced player.

'In the Shadow of the Great Sphinx' is the third movement from the 'Stone Suite,' arranged for Bass Flute and Piano. The 'Stone Suite' is a four movement work for solo flute and flute choir, commissioned by Dr. Chris Potter, in which the soloist is to perform on a different flute for each movement. This work opens with a pensive theme utilizing an Egyptian mode, which leads way to a festive dance. In the flute choir version, the mood is augmented by the use of tambourine, drum, and finger cymbals.

Carmen Maria Carneci presents ...une main immense (...an immense hand), for contrabass or bass flute.

The seven fragments of this work are a quasi-reading of MAGDA CARNECI’s poem, a filtering of the text through the patterns developed by the flute. The remaining understandable words are scattered within the instrumental texture, thus carrying a new emotional weight. This, together with the new developed proportions in rhythms and form, prevents the composition from being simply illustrative. It is a sample of the composer’s manner of treating voice and instrument as a whole: the singing-speaking voice turns and mixes into the flute tones, which, in their turn, try to imitate vocal colors. In this work, as well as in other compositions of hers for voice, words and musical cells split and meet again in a vivid anamorphosis.

une main immense bears a dedication to Pierre-Yves Artaud.

Duration: 10'. For the advanced player.

Imperial Topaz

Chamberlain, N

Imperial Topaz was commissioned by Beth Devlin for her husband, Jay Devlin. Imperial topaz is the gemstone for the 23rd anniversary which the couple celebrated in 2018, when the piece was completed. The color of imperial topaz has been described as the color of the sun at sunset. In the 17th century, Russian tsars claimed exclusive rights to the gemstones mined in Russia which resulted in the gem being named imperial topaz. The piece is intended to be performed on contrabass flute, but could easily be performed on any of the low flutes or even the C flute.

Thrive

Chamberlain, N

Thrive was commissioned by Beth Devlin and dedicated to her husband, Jay Devlin, and all women who have battled endometrial cancer. Beth commissioned the piece shortly after receiving her own cancer diagnosis and before receiving treatment. Beth is an avid flutist who specializes in the low flutes. She wanted a piece that reflected her initial reactions and how she processed being diagnosed with endometrial cancer. Beth is determined not to just live with her life after diagnosis, but to thrive. This was the inspiration for the title. When first diagnosed, Beth was in shock and described feeling numb. That numbness turned to being overwhelmed and anger. But Beth is an optimistic person, and she wants her life and the piece to reflect hope. She wants to inspire others to not let the diagnosis put a stop to doing what you love. Keep calm, and play your flute!

Albisiphonics

Cohen, J

Composed in celebration of Peter Sheridan's acquisition of an historic albisiphon baritono, Jonathan Cohen created this substantial four-movement piece (a sonata in all but name) which employs all three octaves of the modern bass flute and features its many moods: the unapologetically romantic and lyrical, the brash with staccato syncopation, the contemplative, and the exuberant and euphoric.

For advanced players.

PRAYER FOR A DAMAGED WORLD is, above all, a very beautiful and innocent melody for Bass Flute, supported by a gentle piano accompaniment – neither of which is technically demanding. Composed as a plea during the challenging summer of 2020, the work is a moving introduction to the lyrical and sonorous richness of the Bass Flute.

Universal Editions presents Basilica deserta for bass flute (or C flute) and piano by composer Tilmann Dehnhard.

From the composer: "While in the process of composing music I often imagine the people that will play the music eventually - I see them in front of my inner eye, most of the times in concert situations. For this piece, I always imaged [the commissioner] with his bass flute and his piano partner in a huge church, empty, maybe even abandoned. And that is how the title came to life: Basilica deserta".

Basilica deserta includes some extended techniques such as wind sounds, timbral trills, tongue stops, and more.

Ballade

Dorff, D

A change of pace for low flues, Dorff's Ballade is a 7-minute slow-fast-slow exploration. The rich beauty of alto and bass flute sonorities, particularly in their low registers, is inspired by jazz vocal stylings along with a theatrical approach to duet writing, as dialogue and counterpoint between the instruments builds to dramatic unison passages in octaves. Ballade is also available for alto  flute, flugelhorn, and piano.

A welcome addition to the bass flute repertoire, Dorff’s 14-minute sonata is designed as two pairs of slow-fast movements. While composed as a complete 4-movement sonata, either half may be performed alone as a 7-minute recital work. 

The Sonata springs from Dorff's impressions of the Hudson River: "Every thought led to the river’s essence, its own spirit and life — flowing through raw nature, from skinny trickles to mightiness spawning cities; supporting subtle life, and becoming a central commons for human societies." 

The movement titles are: I. Sprawling, burbling; II. Sparkling, glistening; III. Under Winter; and IV. Spring Spirits.

Karuna

Douglas, B

Chris Potter presents this transcription of Douglas's Karuna for bass flute and piano.

Romance, Op. 62

Elgar, E

One of the lesser-known compositions of Edward Elgar is his Romance for Bassoon and Orchestra. Composed in 1910, the more oft-performed reduction for bassoon and piano is perfectly suitable for performance on the bass flute. In this work the bass flute takes full advantage of the idiomaticisms of its range - similar to the bassoon, the upper notes of the work bloom soft and delicate, with the more luxurious mid- and low-range bearing the brunt of the hugely romantic melody.

Ahmed Essyad presents Asselman for solo bass flute.

The final piece in Ahmed Essyad's Le Cycle de L'eau [The Water Cycle], Asselman evokes the close of the cycle with the deep tones and liquid sound of the bass flute. Full of dark sounds and swirling motion, Asselman asks the bass flute player to amplify the flute through four speakers placed around the audience to embed them in the tumultuous liquid evocation itself.

Duration: 3'30. For the advanced player.

Ahmed Essyad presents La source captive for solo bass flute.

The central piece in Ahmed Essyad's Le Cycle de L'eau [The Water Cycle], La source captive is a wandering tone poem on the origins of the waters and the life within that source. Quick movement alternates with reflective meditations of sound, with breathy swirls and multiphonics to properly illustrate the squirming organisms of movements of the waters.

Duration: 16'. For advanced players.

Ahmed Essyad presents Le temps rebelle for bass flute and piano.

The penultimate piece in Ahmed Essyad's Le Cycle de L'eau [The Water Cycle], Le temps rebelle (Rebellious weather) is a violent, roiling piece with massive quick gestures and racing notes between the two performers, punctuated by deceptive moments of calm with burblings quietly erupting underneath.

Duration: 10’20. For advanced players.

She Cried

Feshareki, S

Shiva Feshareki s She Cried, which was originally written for untrained female voice, is a simple, melancholic piece dealing with isolation and loneliness, in an overwhelmingly suffocated and crowded environment. The subject matter, as well as the organic construction of the piece, compliments the bass flute's almost fragile and vulnerable nature, and its uniquely raw tone.

This version for solo bass flute was made in 2007 by the composer for Carla Rees.