M. de la Barre suite op 2 #1 (Part 1 of 2) Prélude, Gravement/Allemande, L'Angelique/Air, le Badin

Recorded live in concert 1 December 2007. Suite en D La Ré, Tierce Majeure from Pieces pour la Flûte Traversiere, Ouevre Quatrième, 1702. This is the opening work in the first-ever publication for solo flute and continuo. Michel de la Barre (1680-1743) was the pre-eminent flutist of his day, and according to the preface to this work, he decided to publish these pieces in part to counter the faulty transcriptions of them in circulation as manuscripts. He mentions that there are several special new features to these pieces, including use of notes in the third octave and the low c-sharp (a semitone below the lowest natural note of the instrument), and says that anyone who wishes to know more about the techniques for producing these notes and playing the pieces may stop by his house for a free lesson (imagine, say, James Galway making such an offer today!). Even though his fame rested in part on his way of playing the airs tendres which had made up the flute's solo repertoire in the late seventeenth century, de la Barre here promoted a new style that was a bit more instrumental than vocal. His preface also gives some opinions on performance, suggesting that theorbo (a large lute) goes with flute better ("ils convient mieux") than the metal-strung harpsichord because of the lute's softer-sounding gut strings, and states that most of the pieces in this collection may be played unaccompanied. Finally, de a Barre says that his motive for publication is "pour la gloire de ma flûte."

Category:

Music

Tags:

• Michel
• de
• la
• Barre
• flute
• traverso
• traversiere
• baroque
• suite
• prelude
• allemande
• air
• badineirie
• dance
• danse

[TheFabledMyth]

wow, that sounds awesome! I hope i can play that good someday :)

[ClassicalMusicReview]

You must have been La Barre's gardener or chamber maid..as there is no rational accounting for this facility otherwise.

[ClassicalMusicReview]

You always manage to go ahead with the structure and yet go nowhere.This is very difficult and I've rarely heard it so

powerfully as you do.

[ClassicalMusicReview]

Your sense of how to employ so many illusions to the aspect of lyricality is fabulous.