The ballroom at Judson is a charming room, perfect for a mid-sized recital, as this was, with very lively acoustics. In some cases, this made for a certain amount of shrillness when playing in the upper register of the instrument, but also made for warmth and richness at the other end of the instrument’s wide range. The flute family encompasses not only flute and piccolo, which we all know and love, but also an alto flute (longer and with a larger diameter) and a bass flute, which somewhat resembles (from a distance, at least) the slide portion of a trombone, but with keys added to it.
The Greater Cleveland Flute Society or GCFS is adventuresome in discovering new composers who write for these instruments, or older works that need a wider exposure. Nine works by seven composers were presented in this slightly more than an hour recital, for which all the composers were present, each providing a brief introduction to their work.
Two short pieces by Michael Barna, Increasing Returns and A New Dawn were given a sensitive performance by Debra Roznovsky, flute, and Mark George, piano. Originally written for guitar, they were rearranged for these two intruments, to very good effect.
Julie Stern described her Impressions for Solo Alto Flute as a ‘day in nature.’ Ann Droste produced a gorgeous mellow tone that made one think of Pan or a Syrinx, perhaps. One could spend a delightful day in this area of nature. At times, in the lower register especially, there was a bit of an English horn sound to certain notes, adding a touch of piquancy to the bucolic surroundings.
Also for solo flute, Schizoflutia by Glenn Crytzer consists of four movements. The first two—Hallucinations, followed by Emotions--were played by Beth Hwang who deliberately produced overtones and other not particularly beautiful sounds, to demonstrate the composer’s impression of Schizophrenia, including feelings of terror. Because the flute was amplified, just tapping on the keypads produced sound, as well. The second portion—Delusions and Sensory Overload--allowed Lisa Heinrich to be almost happy-go-lucky and sprightly by contrast. There were tuneful sections, while in the final portion, she turned her back on the audience, playing into the amplified piano which produced weird overtones echoing over and over through the adjacent speakers.
Victoria Belfiglio wrote both the words and the music for her piece Sogni D'Oro, a lullaby dedicated to her three sons. The title is Italian for ‘sweet dreams’ and the phrase was repeated several times in the lyrics, sung in Italian by soprano Kim Lauritzen, and thoughtfully provided—with English translation—for the audience. Kathleen Mylecraine, flute and Mark George, piano were equal collaborators with Ms. Lauritzen in this delightful art song, which was seamlessly woven together for the three participants.
Klaus George Roy, who was the annotator for Cleveland Orchestra programs for some 30 years, was also a composer of note, before, during and after that experience. Included in his wide-ranging catalog of works are Cheaper By the Dozen, Op. 124 for two flutes, with spoken narration before each charming and witty miniature. Linda Miller and Bonnie Svetlik were the instrumentalists, with Mr. Roy speaking his own dryly clever and sardonic verses, reminiscent of Ogden Nash in five of the twelve sections. In Toccata, the two flutes chased each other up and down the scales. Discorso deliberato demonstrated that points of view may differ, but should be treated with mutual courtesy. Funghetta (sic) is of course, a tribute to small mushrooms, while Colpa di lingua is a somewhat discordant exercise in flutter-tongueing (a musical technique utilized by woodwinds and brass). A Song for J.S.B. (Johann Sebastian, that is) employed the two flutes as an ersatz organ while in Viennoiserie they played a waltz, complete with oompah pahs. Swing Row is a musical pun—think ‘Swing Low’ in 12-tone row style.
Roy’s Romance, with Garlands, Op. 134, was written for the 1990 wedding of former Orchestra manager Kenneth Haas. Following his untimely death in 2001, the composer dedicated the work to his friend’s memory. Appropriately, it is a song of love, and was gorgeously performed by Rebecca Chen, flute, with Mark George accompanying on piano.
Robert F. Leng also had two dissimilar works on the program. Horizontes al Unisonos has, in the composer’s words ‘a melody’! as amply demonstrated by Debra Roznovsky, flute and Mark George, piano. The other work, Lotus Blossom II / Contemplation ~ Revelation; Realization ~ Reflection was just the opposite, (his words, not mine.) Ten music stands were arranged in a circle on the floor in front of the stage, each containing a double page of sheet music. It was to represent playing a duet with oneself. Using a variety of techniques, Rebecca Chen and Kathleen Mylecraine bent notes, played interesting intervals, short melodic bursts and overtones, as indicated on the pages, and when they ran out of notes, simply moved to the next stand to the right. When they arrived back at the beginning stand once more, the piece was concluded. Interesting concept, well executed.
Margi Griebling-Haigh is a busy and prolific composer in Cleveland, having written for nearly every possible combination of instruments, from full orchestra on down. Several years ago, she wrote Coquin' arena for the flute choir at the Cleveland Music School Settlement. The participants here wore t-shirts, khakis and beach hats to demonstrate the seashell/beach motif illustrated by the music with its fascinating harmonies, resonances and rhythms. The performers were Tom Brown, piccolo and flute, Judy Hall, Bonnie Svetlik and Lisa Heinrich, flutes, Ann Droste, alto flute, and Kathleen Mylecraine, bass flute. This piece would bring sunshine into a snow-covered landscape!
To learn more about flutes, or upcoming events sponsored by this group, visit their web-site at http://www.gcfs.org.
From Cool Cleveland contributor Kelly Ferjutz artswriterATadelphia.net (:divend:)