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Cylindrical vs. Conical Piccolos
    Piccolos are made with either cylindrical or conical bores. Cylindrical piccolos (sometimes called little flutes) are in fact “octave higher little flutes.” Like a flute, the headjoint is tapered and the body is cylindrical. Conical piccolos reverse the acoustical shape of the instrument and have a cylindrical headjoint and a tapered body.
    Cylindrical piccolos are almost always metal instruments and are silver or silver-plated. They speak freely throughout the range. While often more in tune, they project less well than conical instruments. For this reason a cylindrical piccolo can be a great choice for a player to use in a concert band where the piccolo player sits right in front of the conductor. The timbre of the instrument is especially useful for repertoire that features writing in the top octave at quieter dynamics. They are also wonderful for students learning to play the instrument.
    Conical piccolos are known for their projection and are made of wood (grenadilla), silver or a composite. D5 (remember the piccolo sounds one octave higher than written) is the lowest note on both the cylindrical and conical piccolos; however, piccolos are being developed that play down to C5. In general, professional players prefer wooden conical piccolos. These instruments project best in orchestral settings and have a beautiful low register.

Tuning
    Each and every piccolo has its own tuning tendencies. Small adjustments of any kind make a large difference to such a little instrument, so it is important to learn the particular propensities of the instrument you play. I prefer to play scales and intervals with a flute colleague to learn the proper adjustments by listening to offending beats while tuning difference tones. (To practice difference tone tuning, player 1 plays a top octave A while player 2 plays a top octave F. Listen for the lower note. This is the difference tone.)
    Flutists are taught to check the cork placement with the line on the cleaning rod. Once the line on the cleaning rod is positioned in the center of the embouchure hole, they are instructed to leave it alone. With the piccolo, this will not be the case.
    When tuning a piccolo, start by inserting the cleaning rod into the headjoint. The line on the piccolo rod is 11 mm. Just like on the flute, start by positioning this line in the center of the embouchure hole. If the line is too close to the crown end of the headjoint, unscrew the crown and gently push the cork assembly towards the embouchure hole. If the line is too far from the center of the embouchure hole, simply tighten the crown until the cork assembly is in the center of the embouchure hole.

    Once the line is centered in the embouchure hole, check the As and Ds with a tuner. Notice the discrepancies. Often the third octave of the piccolo is flat and is also difficult to play. A sometimes overlooked option for tuning is adjusting the position of the headjoint cork. Modern flute players are generally taught to avoid moving the cork. However with conical piccolos, the ability to change the position of the cork is critical for tuning.
    On the conical piccolo the top octave D (sounding D6) is the crucial note to overall tuning and is often very flat. It is often low in pitch due to the fact that the fingering is achieved by overblowing the lowest G to the third partial and then lifting the left hand index finger. To bring the D pitch up, it is often best to move the cork closer  towards  the center of the embouchure hole. This measurement may around 9 mm rather than the traditional 11 mm on the cleaning rod. Sometimes a bit closer is even better yet. Move the cork until the D6 is in tune with the tuner. With the cork in its new position, you may not need to pull the headjoint out at all to tune. This will keep the inside bore smoother and will also help the sound. You will notice that the entire third octave is now freer, fuller, and better in tune, and the highest notes will be easier to produce. With some experimentation you will find just the right place for the cork. The goal is to make the third octave seem more like an extension of the flute. With the cork newly adjusted, the middle octave D may be a bit sharp, but it is easy enough to adjust this note with the lip and/or air stream direction.

More than One
    Many professional piccolo players own several piccolos and select the best instrument for the part at hand. John Krell, legendary piccolo player of the Philadelphia Orchestra, played both a silver and a wooden conical piccolo. He told me that conductor Leopold Stokowski would instruct him as to which piccolo was preferable for a particular piece.

Experiment
    Do not be afraid to experiment with the placement of the cork for conical piccolos. My teacher Keith Brion, who was a student of John Krell, suggested this method to me. Proof came to me years ago when Brion and I tuned a section of twenty high school piccolo players with this method. It was amazing how in tune the solo from John Philip Sousa’s Stars and Stripes sounded afterwards. For good measure, be sure to use the last three fingers of the left hand to trill the Eb to F in the band version of this solo and always add the right hand second and third fingers for the high Ab’s.

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Ping Ponging 
    Rather than playing one long phrase, one person plays a small group or chunk of notes, and then the second person plays the next group, alternating groups through the phrase. On a second pass, the players switch roles, so both play all of the groups. This cluster of notes may be constructed in several ways such as by beat, by phrase, by measure, or by slur group. More advanced students may attempt to play these groups off the beat.  

Scale

Thirds, alternating by measure

5-Note Patterns, alt. by 4s, 8s, 16s, etc.


    Besides the examples above, players can ping pong arpeggios, seventh chords, broken seventh chords, modes, chromatic/whole tone/octatonic scales, and etudes. There are many benefits to this strategy. One of the most significant is the improvement in listening skills. Each flutist becomes more inclined to match the articulation, tone, tempo, and dynamics of the other. In addition, both players improve focus and concentration as they alternate groups.
    This alternation also provides an opportunity learn how to comfortably begin the phase at different points. Playing both sets of groups leads to a stronger understanding of the phrase as a whole and may lead to a better way to play the phrase. It also highlights intervallic patterns that might be missed when playing the phrase as a whole and this can lead to more creative choices in using colors and inflection. 
    Flutists may also find better places in which to breathe due to the change in focus through this process. By playing in such small groups, it is easier to sense any awkwardness and diagnose problem areas. It also leads to faster progress in finger coordination. The brain tends to retain information better when learned in smaller chunks with a consistent system. This means that students will learn at a faster speed and attain a higher rate of retention.

Orchestral Repertoire 
    We also practiced our ensemble music together. We switched between first and second parts (or piccolo or alto) in order to learn the other part and better understand how the parts fit together. For example, as practice buddies, we have practiced Mendelssohn’s Symphony No. 4 and Ravel’s Daphnes et Chloé. In these practice sessions, we were able to address several issues, including listening to the other part, seeing how the parts fit together, understanding the harmony, resolving intonation issues, matching articulation, and maintaining balance, dynamics, tone, vibrato, and breathing. We often worked on well-known orchestral flute repertoire, which gave us a solid foundation when given the music in orchestra.   

Duet Reading  
    In addition to ping ponging and orchestral repertoire, sightreading is a wonderful skill to develop during practice time. Working with a partner on duets makes it fun and also provides players with tools that they can use in solo, chamber, and orchestral repertoire. When another person is playing, one must keep moving in order to maintain the flow of the piece and learn to think quickly about the key signature, time signature, rhythm, and tempo. It also develops the ability to match one’s sound with another player which is important for orchestral playing. It can be very useful to have some duets ready to play as well – whether for auditions, competitions, or flute parties. (We sometimes added two or more flutes depending on the requirements of the piece.) We also found that by learning the style of a certain composer in a smaller work such as a flute duet, it was easier to play the style in a larger work by the same composer.

Intonation 
    Intonation is an ongoing battle that flutists often work on through drone tuning on a tuner. Another, more beneficial technique is to practice intonation while playing with another flutist. The sound is similar, so it is easier to match tones and hear intonation discrepancies. Additionally, practicing drone tuning with another flutist allows one to work on intonation both with and without vibrato, which is helpful for improving one’s intonation in a larger group setting. Partner practice on intonation also allows the players to work on balance. Often, we found that it was not a matter of being in tune, but of having the correct balance between the players. Balance can also be affected by a player’s use of vibrato. By working on vibrato with a partner, one can quickly discern whether the vibrato is too wide or too narrow. One way in which to work on this is by playing a whole-note scale in unison or at various intervals with the q=60. Both players could practice vibrato with 2, 3, 4, 5, or 6 vibrations per beat and listen for matching purposes. 

    Combination tones or resultant tones occur when two loud tones are played at the same time. The frequency of the tone can either be the summation or difference of the two pitches. We practiced difference tones to work on intonation. Player one played a C6 while player two played an A6. The better we each played each of our notes, the stronger the lower pitch. We continued chromatically up the scale working for a ringing sound.   
    We also made an Intonation Tendency Chart for each note on the flute. Player one played a note without looking at the tuner, and player two, while looking at the tuner, notated on the chart the note’s pitch tendency. We repeated this process several times to be sure we had a solid idea about where the intonation on the instrument was. Before starting this process, it is important to check the headjoint cork and to pull the flute out to the proper place. To successfully accomplish ideal placement, assembling the flute in the right manner is key, as the embouchure hole must be level in order for the flute to remain in tune. Once the ideal placement is found, one may overblow low C, C# and D to be sure the first, second and fourth partials are in tune with themselves and with the tuner.  
    Practicing with a friend is a fun, productive way to improve your flute playing. See what creative strategies you come up with during your time with your practice partner and we hope you have as much fun as we did. 

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Solos de Concours
    Since the establishment of the Paris Conservatory in 1795, the solos de concours have been used to test each student’s mastery of his or her instrument. These compositions challenge them to attain pure tone, clean articulation, and flawless technique all within the scope of a musical interpretation. Every June, graduating students put their years of training to the test in order to graduate from the Conservatory with the highest honors, earning either a Premier or Deuxième Prix. A majority vote for a prize from an uneven-numbered jury panel (not including the flute professor) is not only a personal achievement for a student, it can also lead to employment, including a position in the l’Orchestra de Paris as well as conductor Jules Pasdeloup’s Société des Jeunes Artistes du Conservatoire.

Early Repertoire
    In the first flute concours in 1824, students performed Benoit Berbiguier’s Fifth Concerto. From 1824 until the late nineteenth century, test pieces alternated between those written by flute professors Jean-Louis Tulou and Henri Altès.
     Upon his appointment as professor in 1893, Paul Taffanel sought to raise the standards of flute playing and challenge his students with new works commissioned by contemporary composers. In order to elevate the quality of flute playing and showcase the instrument’s displays of musicality as well as technical brilliance, Taffanel championed test pieces that challenged his students. He stated that the composition should “contain the wherewithal to test the examinees on matters of phrasing, expression, tone control, and virtuosity.”² Taffanel also advised composers of newly commissioned works to write one continuous movement of contrasting sections or an Andante followed by an Allegro and to keep the pieces under six minutes in length.³
     Taffanel selected composers he thought would epitomize the French style of flute playing in their pieces and hoped that these works would purify the solo flute repertoire.⁴ For example, Gabriel Fauré’s Fantaisie, Op.79 (1898), Alphonse Duvernoy’s Concertino, Op.45 (1899), Louis Ganne’s Andante et Scherzo (1901), and Cécile Chaminade’s Concertino, Op.107 (1902) all contain not only technically challenging virtuosic passages, but lyrical lines that present their own difficulties as well as require musical expression and shaping. 

French Teaching Methods
    New works in the early 1900s showcased the flute as a strong solo instrument and highlighted the advancements made in its construction following the acceptance of the Boehm flute at the turn of the century. In her dissertation on chamber music in France from 1850 to 1950, Susan Nanette Hayes notes that “the acceptance of the Boehm flute in France as well as the introduction by Paul Taffanel of new teaching methods at the Conservatoire, had a direct effect on the music written for the instrument.”⁵ The teaching methods Hayes refers to include the advocacy of pure tone, natural vibrato, and impeccable technique. Taffanel instructed his students in masterclasses and lessons, emphasizing good tone quality, sonorous colors, and finger dexterity. Taffanel often demonstrated in class his sonority in the low register and was known for his singing tone.
    Taffanel’s student Georges Barrère remembered, “quality as well as quantity of tone and fine technique were only a small part of his splendid characteristics as a flute player.”⁶ In his interviews with Edward Blakeman, Marcel Moyse remembered Taffanel’s sound sharing similar qualities to that of a singer. Concerning Taffanel’s vibrato, Moyse described it as “light” and “discreet.”⁷ Taffanel’s student Adolphe Hennebains recounts, “When he spoke to us of notes with vibrato or expression, he told us with a mysterious air that these notes, forte or piano, seemed to come from within himself. One had the impression that they came directly from the heart or the soul.”⁸ Taffanel was an inspiration to his students, and he defined the French school of flute playing, a tradition that would be passed down through Conservatory flute professors and carried on through the music he commissioned.

Cécile Chaminade
    For the 1902 solos de concours, Taffanel called upon Cécile Chaminade, a popular musical figure of the time. Chaminade regularly performed her works in concert, and the publication and wide distribution of her songs served as her main means of income. Chaminade built a career largely on her own, despite the social confines of her era. She was accepted to study at the Conservatory, however, her father did not approve and instead obtained private lessons for her with Conservatory professors. Without the exposure to an educational institution’s atmosphere and the influence of peers, Chaminade relied on the guidance of her mentors and her own intuition to shape her musical style and taste. Her music was noted for its beautiful melodies, “elegantly and naturally developed” ideas, and “fundamentally French” style.⁹
    Chaminade’s Concertino, Op.107, met Taffanel’s solos de concours requirements. It provided challenges of expression and technique within one continuous movement. Chaminade took each repetition of the flute’s melody as an opportunity to add embellishments and ornamentations. Throughout the piece, there is also a continuous build of energy. Chaminade indicated the increases of intensity with stringendo markings over florid passages, including a vivo section featuring winding slurred triplets in alternation with double-tongued sixteenth notes. The second theme, marked più animato e agitato, explores a melody at a forte dynamic in the lower range of the flute. This gave Taffanel’s students the opportunity to mimic their professor’s resonant sound in the low register. Chaminade’s Concertino added a refined work to the growing solo flute repertoire of the time.

The War Years
    Upon Taffanel’s death in 1908, Adolphe Hennebains was appointed as flute professor. Hennebains and later successors, including Leopold Jean-Baptiste Lafleurance, Philippe Gaubert and Marcel Moyse, passed down Taffanel’s teaching traditions and upheld the French school of flute playing. Despite the turmoil of World War II and the Nazi invasion of Paris in 1940 that forced many citizens with Jewish ties, including Moyse, to flee the city, the Conservatory remained open. Moyse’s vacant position was filled by Gaston Crunelle, who remained at the Conservatory until 1969. The war caused artists and musicians to seek ways of preserving French tradition, culture, and talent. Claude Delvincourt, named Conservatory Director in 1941, fought to keep all of the students at the Conservatory and insisted that they had important roles in the orchestras and choirs to avoid their being taken to German prison camps. Delvincourt also supported young contemporary composers and named Olivier Messiaen professor of harmony in 1941. “Messiaen’s class quickly gained a reputation as a sympathetic home for the most adventurous student composers.”¹⁰
    The war brought a wave of extremely challenging and increasingly difficult works for the flute students competing in the concours. In her dissertation, “The Paris Conservatory and the ‘Solos de Concours’ for flute, 1950-1955,” Kathleen Cook points out the departure from trends of the early 1900s. She states, “Solos written at the beginning of the twentieth century are similar to each other regarding form, length, and harmonic and technical emphasis. These solos, highly romantic in quality, contain a two-part form, which consists of a slow, often cantabile opening movement followed by a faster more technical second movement. The solos of 1930 and after are more diverse and of greater difficulty and the individual styles of each composer becomes more obvious.”¹¹
    New, more difficult concours works included Henri Dutilleux’s Sonatine (1943), André Jolivet’s Chant de Linos (1944), Sonatine by Pierre Sancan (1946), and Olivier Messiaen’s Le Merle Noir (1952).

Later Women Composers
    In the middle and latter half of the 20th century a number of women wrote solos de concours pieces, including Jeanine Rueff, Ginette Keller, Thérèse Brenet, and Betsy Jolas. They were all affected by Messiaen’s ideas, either directly as members of his progressive studio, or through the influence of his teaching and music. Their pieces, written from 1954 to 1977, featured rhythmic complexity and extended techniques while still demanding artistic expression. They often strayed from the two-part Adagio-Allegro form suggested by Taffanel, but continued to perpetuate the French tradition as well as Taffanel’s goal of elevating the instrument and expanding the repertoire.

Jeanine Rueff
    During her time as a student at the Conservatory, Rueff studied with Henri Büsser. She became an accompanist for the institution in 1950, an assistant to the saxophone and clarinet studios, and professor in 1959. Rueff was a winner of numerous prizes and competitions including the Grand Prix de Rome in 1948.
    In 1954 Rueff was commissioned to write a flute work for the concours. Her piece, Diptyque, for flute and piano, seems characteristic of Messiaen’s rhythmic complexity and is perhaps a reference to his own composition by the same name for organ in 1930. In her dissertation, Cook suggests that Reuff’s title, Diptyque, may be a reference to the art term diptych, two tablets or paintings either attached or intended to be hung together: “The two defined sections of Rueff’s Diptyque, Moderato and Allegro, are full of colorful contrasts in style and mood.”¹² The opening Moderato in 5/8 features free cadenza passages for the flute. The chordal accompaniment of piano gives the flutist liberties in the more florid and technical passages and allows for interpretive freedom. The second section is a rhythmically driven Allegro, alternating between 7/8 and 3/4 meter. Challenges include the use of five against three and rhythmic displacement. Flutter-tonguing is utilized as an extended technique.

Ginette Keller
    Ginette Keller was a student of Nadia Boulanger and Olivier Messiaen at the Conservatory before becoming a professor herself in 1970. Keller wrote Chant de Parthénope for the 1968 concours. The programmatic piece calls upon the Greek epic poem, The Odyssey, and the mythological siren, Parthénope who tries to lure Ulysses into a shipwreck with her songs. When she fails, the siren throws herself into the ocean.
    Keller’s atonal composition for flute and piano is divided into three sections. The flute’s opening melody mimics the siren’s song, drawing the listener in with soft, fluid phrases in meters without clear downbeats, such as 114, 124, and 134. Parthénope’s growing persuasion can be heard in the widening registers and intensifying melodic phrase. Siren shrieks are imitated by the extended technique, flutter-tonguing, and trills in the flute’s third octave. Keller employs additional extended techniques throughout the work such as portando and harmonics. In her dissertation, “The Paris Conservatoire concours tradition and the solos de concours for flute, 1955-1990,” Melissa Colgin states, “The return to the opening tempo portrays the final scene of drowning, painted with rolled piano chords and the flute’s plummet to the low register.”¹³

Thérèse Brenet
    Thérèse Brenet graduated from the Conservatory with honors and won the Grand Prix de Rome in 1965. Brenet became a professor at the Conservatory in 1970 and wrote the flute contest piece for the concours in 1974. Her Pantomime was the first concours piece for unaccompanied flute as well as the second to do away with meter altogether. On the first and last page of the score, Brenet includes quotations from the poetry of Paul Verlaine. The first is extracted from Verlaine’s poem, Pantomime published in 1869. “Ce faquin d’Arlequin combine l’enlèvement de Columbine et pirouette quatre fois.” [That impertinent Harlequin schemes the abduction of Columbine and whirls around four times.] As a reference to the Harlequin’s whirl around four times, Brenet’s Pantomime is organized into four movements: Prelude, Répliques, Ostinato, and Postlude. Following the Postlude, Brenet includes the line, “Messieurs, eh bien? Do, mi, sol. Hé! bonsoir, la lune!” [Well, gentlemen? Do, mi, sol. Hey Good evening, moon!] from Verlaine’s poem, Sur l’herbe, published in 1869.
    The first movement is brief, consisting of only four lines. Two stretches of an even, très rapide run feature an eleven-note row (the C# is absent). The first run orders the notes C-B-D-Ab-G-E-Eb-A-F-F#-Bb before the pattern repeats again three and a half more times. The second run is a retrograde, or reversed order of the notes starting on Eb. The last line’s two fragments of material alternate between the prime and retrograde version.
    The second movement, Répliques, or Replies, begins with a brilliant and rapid call from the flute in the third octave. After interruptions in the short bursts of material and persistent repetitions of C# (completing the twelve-tone row), an expressive, singing phrase closes the movement. The flutist also has to create a particular tone on specific notes marked cuivrès, or brassy. This color indication brings to mind the very sound for which Taffanel was famous. In his book, The French Flute School, Dorgeuille writes, “reference was often made to Taffanel’s ‘powerful and brassy’ low register notes.”¹⁴
    The Ostinato movement that follows uses the interval of a minor ninth as a repetitive motive. In both the beginning and conclusion of the movement, the motive is presented in a soft dynamic range in a relaxed tempo and with ease. The movement develops the motive with other material to make a violent and aggressive area of contrast. The Postlude closes the complete work with a slow line of the retrograde row from the Prelude. The row is broken into three parts by breath markings. Each part grows shorter, softer, and slower until a final fade into silence.

Betsy Jolas
    Betsy Jolas was born in Paris, but moved to the United States in 1940 for a six-year stay during the war. After receiving her degree from Bennington College, Jolas returned to Paris to study with Darius Milhaud, Olivier Messiaen, and Georges Caussade at the Conservatory. Jolas was greatly inspired by Messiaen and went on to teach as his assistant at the Conservatory in 1971. On working alongside Messiaen, Jolas recalls, “It was absolutely wonderful. It was absolutely the best class that you could possibly have at the Conserv-atory. He really had the best students; he was the best teacher.”¹⁵ The freedom that Messiaen granted his students to form their own opinions and point of views allowed Jolas to find her own style of writing.
    The 1977 concours featured Jolas’ Episode Second: Ohne Worte. Like Pantomime, it is an unaccompanied flute piece. The atonal work is comprised of both improvisatory sections and sections with measured, rhythmic drive; passages that give the performer freedom to fluctuate tempo are followed by clearly notated rhythms within measures of 44. Episode Second utilizes a number of extended techniques including harmonics, multi-phonics, quarter tones, portamento, and glissando. In her dissertation, Colgin remarks, “Jolas achieves an interesting contrast between the improvisations, which include most of the extended techniques couched within stretches of fluidity or pointillism, and the metered sections, which underscore rhythmic vitality. There is an ease of flow as the rhythmic sections dissolve into the improvisations.”¹⁶

The French School
    According to Michel Debost, Paris Conservatory flute professor from 1981 to 1989, “There is nothing secret about the French school, no secret recipes as in French or Chinese cooking; the French school is simply a practice. Just as the Russian or Juilliard school of playing the violin is a common reference, the French school of flute playing means using the instrument fluently and flexibly through articulation, dexterity, and tone production.”¹⁷ From the solos de concours of Taffanel’s time as flute professor until today, the repertoire commissioned for every yearly examination has challenged students to use their instruments with ease while faced with difficulties in the score. As a result, Conservatory contest pieces continue to be used as studies to develop flawless technique, clear articulation, pure tone, and musicality through phrasing. Despite the vast array of styles and forms composed since 1824, each solos de concours addresses these fundamental flute performance topics. The five women who composed contest pieces for the flutists at the Conservatory preserve the French style of playing through their compositions, yet these pieces are rarely given the accolades they deserve. These works are important additions to the standard flute repertoire.    

Endnotes
¹ Heidi M. Boenke, Flute Music by Women Composers: An Annotated Catalog (New York: Greenwood Press, 1988).
² Edward Blakeman, Taffanel: Genius of the Flute (NY: Oxford Univ. Press, 2005), 187.
³ Ibid.
⁴ Melissa Gail Colgin, “The Paris Conservatoire concours tradition and the solos de concours for flute, 1955-1990” (PhD diss, The University of Texas at Austin, 1992), 38.
⁵ Susan Nanette Hayes, “Chamber Music in France Featuring Flute and Soprano, 1850-1950, and the Study of the Interactions Among the Leading Flutists, Sopranos, Composers, Artists, and Literary Figures of the Time” (PhD diss., University of Maryland, 2006), p.28.
⁶ De Lorenzo, Leonardo, My Complete Story of the Flute: The Instrument, the Performer, the Music (New York: Citadel Press, 1951), p. 187.
⁷ Edward Blakeman, Taffanel: Genius of the Flute (NY: Oxford Univ. Press, 2005), 196.
⁸ Marcel Moyse, “The Unsolvable Problem: Considerations on Flute Vibrato,” Woodwind Magazine 2, no.7 (1950): 4.
⁹ Marcia J. Citron, Cécile Chaminade: A Bio-Bibliography (New York: Greenwood Press, 1988), 8-9.
¹⁰ Caroline Potter, “French Music and the Second World War” French Music Since Berlioz, Ed. Richard Langham Smith and Caroline Potter (England: Ashgate, 2006), 289.
¹¹ Kathleen Roberta Cook, “The Paris Conservatory and the ‘Solos de Concours’ for flute, 1900-1955” (PhD diss, The Univ. of Wisconsin, 1991), 54.
¹² Ibid., 129.
¹³ Melissa Gail Colgin, “The Paris Conservatoire concours tradition and the solos de concours for flute, 1955-1990” (PhD diss, The Univ. of Texas at Austin, 1992), 38.
¹⁴ Claude Dorgeuille, The French Flute School, 1860-1950 (London: Tony Bingham, 1986), 16.
¹⁵ Bruce Duffie, Interview with Betsy Jolas. 17 July 1991.
¹⁶ Melissa Gail Colgin, “The Paris Conservatoire concours tradition and the solos de concours for flute, 1955-1990” (PhD diss, The Univ. of Texas at Austin, 1992), 125.
¹⁷ Kathleen Roberta Cook, “The Paris Conservatory and the ‘Solos de Concours’ for flute, 1900-1955” (PhD diss, The University of Wisconsin, 1991), 29.

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    Here’s how I notate the nuance tapers for the opening of the Mozart Concerto in G Major. The slashes over the notes indicate the nuance tapers.
Nuance tapers can be used in many types of phrases, but they are especially effective on repeated notes, as in the above Mozart phrase. Even though the flute never actually gets to play it, the first theme of the Mozart D Major Concerto also offers a similar opportunity for nuance tapers by the violins.  

   The opening two bars of the Jacques Ibert Pièce, with their built-in accelerated rhythms, offer an ideal canvas onto which one can apply a series of nuance tapers superimposed on an overall crescendo. Too often this phrase is played in an overly smooth, bland, unrhythmic style. However, Ibert’s a piacere marking is assuredly an invitation for applying phrase-shaping dynamics and a tasteful rubato even though his only explicit markings in the introduction are a piano at the very beginning and a crescendo in bars 5-6.

    In the flute solo of Maurice Ravel’s Daphnis et Chloé bars 4 and 5 after rehearsal number 177 contain a series of repeated B naturals notated in gradually accelerating rhythms. Nuance tapers can be applied on each of the syncopated Bs, triplet Bs, and, with enough practice, on the four 32nd note Bs. It is also vitally important to observe the printed crescendo in the fifth bar of 177 and not wait until the ascending scale on the fourth beat, as is often done. Incidentally, though the printed crescendo in the flute part begins on the second beat, the accompanying crescendo for the second violins, violas, cellos, basses and fourth horn actually begins on their first beat. Therefore, the flute, surely in self-defense, should begin its crescendo on the first beat as well.

Ravel, Daphnis et Chloé, Suite 2

    Simpler, though significant, examples of nuance tapers also occur throughout the literature.
Bizet, L’Arlésienne, Suite No. 2, Menuet

Chaminade, Concertino, Op. 107

Ganne, Andante et Scherzo

Bach, Sonata No. 1 in B Minor, BWV 1030

Brahms, Variations on a Theme by Haydn

    Since nuance tapers are simply shorter versions of longer diminuendos, the embouchure changes involved in controlling pitch and tone quality are exactly the same. It is just a question of adjusting to the faster timing. The following exercise is designed to help you perfect that timing and the fine coordination that goes with it. The first note of each pair represents the louder tone, and the second tie-over note represents the diminishing tone. For the louder tone be aware of a very subtle pulling down of the upper lip directing the air lower (to avoid sharpness), and for the diminishing tone a tiny upward (but not forward) movement of the chin directing the air higher.² Be sure to have a tuner handy so that you can monitor the pitch accuracy of the diminishing tone which of course has a tendency to go flat. Keep in mind that for a musically effective nuance taper, it is not necessary to diminish all the way down to a super pianissimo. The ear can easily detect and appreciate even the slightest taper. Careful listening to both your live and recorded sound will lead to the best artistic choices.

   In this exercise practice the dynamic patterns of the note pairs at a moderate tempo, starting at MM=88 per beat and gradually increasing the tempo until quarter=144. Apply those dynamic patterns to different notes in the form of scales and intervals traversing the flute’s entire three-octave range. Also practice different dynamic gradations like f-mf, mf-p, mp-pp and more subtle ones like mf-mp, mp-p and p-pp. 
   A welcome bonus in managing quick and well-controlled nuance tapers is that you will be able to do genuine fp’s more confidently (fp’s are, in fact, instantaneous versions of nuance tapers). Brass and string players have a natural bent for playing effective fp’s. There is no reason why flutists cannot do this as well. For instance, go to the first movement of the Mozart D Major Flute Concerto and test yourself on the eleven fp’s contained therein. They are Mozart’s authentic dynamic markings, but too many flutists blithely ignore them, perhaps out of fear of going flat. That fear can be eliminated once you establish a solid technique for nuance tapers. (Some editions of the Mozart D Major may not include all of the fp’s, so here is a checklist for the first movement: bar 72, beat 2; bar 80, beat 1; bar 82, beat 1; bar 88, beat 2; bar 90, beat3; bar 91, beat 3; bar 155, beat 1; bar 157, beat 1; bar 165, beat 2; bar 167, beat 3; bar 168, beat 3.) 
    Speaking of brass players and their enviable skill in making quick dynamic changes, I have often wondered why some trumpeters, when performing the opening solo in the first Promenade of the Mussorgsky-Ravel Pictures at an Exhibition, prefer to play the quarter notes in an overly legato style instead of applying a subtle nuance taper on each one. Besides being more stylish, it would also be paying homage to Mussorgsky’s original version for piano, where each quarter note undergoes an automatic and natural nuance taper. 
   I began this article by mentioning my predilection for humming. Did you know that humming can also be an important part of a singer’s warm-up, akin to a brass player’s mouthpiece buzzing? Not only that, but some voice teachers apparently prescribe humming as a therapy for vocal problems. If you Google “humming and singing”, you will be surprised at how many vocal technique references pop up (about 848,000). For instance, try the Singing Exercises for Dummies Cheat Sheet: A “Hum”-able Vocal Warm-Up. There is even some welcome advice from Human Resources concerning “what to do about co-workers who hum all day long”.     

Endnotes
¹Arthur Weisberg in The Art of Wind Playing (Schirmer Books), calls them “resonance tones” (pp. 33-43), and Peter-Lukas Graf in his richly-detailed treatise, Interpretation: How to Shape a Melodic Line (Schott) calls them “flexible phrasings” (p. 55).
Perhaps one could combine those two terms plus my “nuance taper,” into one all-purpose acronym, RFNTP (Resonant and Flexible Nuance Taper Phrasings).
²See my article, “Jawboning and the Flute Embouchure,” The Instrumentalist (Sept., Oct., Dec. 1971) and reprinted in Flute Talk (May/June, Sept., Oct. 1987)

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    Fairbanks Flutists has 15-20 members ages 18-68. It includes university students, Fairbanks Symphony flutists, and community members. Each year we present one concert and usually have seven rehearsals. Fairbanks Flutists members have been performing together for 35 years. During this time we have amassed a large library of music. Sometimes I plan the program around a new piece and then dip into the repertoire from past performances to fill out the program. In May 2014 we ended the concert with the final movement of Flutes on Vacation by Jacques Casterede and wanted to play the entire work in 2015. This decision instantly gave us the title and theme for the May 2015 concert. This musical vacation took the listeners to five countries with works either depicting a specific country or native folk songs as in the case of Loch Lomond by Ervin Monroe and The Sea in Spring by Michio Miyagi. 
    The audience loved these geographically different pieces, and they were also technically challenging for the players. The program included both original flute choir works and arrangements. I added two bass flute parts to The Sea in Spring to create more of a shakuhachi effect. This also gave the alto and bass players more to do than usual. Flutes on Vacation was originally written for flute quartet, so the challenge was to get 20 flutes to sound like four. To further carry the theme, the conductor can give a brief description to the audience. We also had fun taking a photograph of the group in front of a friend’s home-built plane and used this for publicity.

Illinois Valley Flute Ensemble, LaSalle-Peru
Director: Sue Gillio
    Sue Gillio, flute professor at Illinois Valley Community College, is the owner of Music Suite 408 and director of the Illinois Valley Flute Ensemble. Gillio is a graduate of Western Illinois University (BA, MA, Gerald Carey) and is principal flute of the Illinois Valley Symphony. She also teaches at the Summer Flute Camps in San Diego and Westminster Choir Conservatory in Princeton, New Jersey.

    The Illinois Valley Flute Ensemble has 28-30 members from 9th grade through adult. They usually present five public concerts plus church services and holiday-themed concert appearances and rehearse weekly.
    We enjoyed this Halloween program from 2012 which we played for a packed house. Since many people do not realize the music heard on soundtracks for television shows, commercials, and cartoons is classical music, this program highlighted the concept that classical music can be fun. It was an effort to educate the audience in an enjoyable way. We performed at night lit by LED candles and dressed in bat capes and other costumes.
    I pick music based on a theme for a program, but I do not select a program based on key relationships. I like to begin the concerts with something upbeat or “Fanfare-ish” such as the opening of Richard Strauss Also Sprach Zarathustra, Op. 30. I enjoy programming classical music that the audience and the players may associate with other things such as TV commercials, cartoons, or a movie soundtrack so that there can be an educational component to the concert. Since the audience is there to listen to music, I speak very little during concerts. For the Halloween concert we had a large number of children in the audience so I programmed the sound track to the Addams Family television show so they could snap their fingers along with us.
    While Phyllis Avidan Louke’s Of Wizards and Witches and the “Chrysalis” movement from Suite Butterfly were not well-known to the audience, they are programmatic and created musical pictures in the audience’s imagination. I also try to select music that the flutists enjoy practicing and the audience will enjoy hearing.
    Another of my favorite programs included a performance of Louke’s Temple of Heaven. One of our adult flutists had just returned from a trip to China and we created a PowerPoint presentation of her photos which were shown during the performance. I like combining the visual and performing arts together in a creative way.
    I am currently planning a Flute Madrigal Dinner for a Christmas concert, a concert featuring Bugs Bunny/Cartoon music, and a Starved Rock State Park/Illinois-Michigan Canal themed program since we are based in the Starved Rock Illinois Valley. Most of our programs are 50 to 60 minutes of music in length. It is better to have the audience wanting to return to hear us play.

Rose City Flute Choir, Portland, Oregon
Director: Phyllis Avidan Louke
    Phyllis Avidan Louke has played in flute choirs since 1971, and has served as Music Director of Rose City Flute Choir since 1996. She has conducted the Professional Flute Choir (2004) and the High School Flute Choir (2002) at NFA Conventions and has guest conducted flute choirs in Arizona, Florida, Illinois, and Virginia. Louke graduated from the University of California at Santa Barbara where she studied flute with Burnett Atkinson.

    The Rose City Flute Choir has 35 members who range in playing ability from adult intermediate through professional. They present three to four different programs each year in a total of 10 concerts and hold 9-16 rehearsals before each concert.

    Every year the ensemble plays several December concerts, including one at the Grotto Festival of Lights, held in a stone church at a Catholic retreat that is decked out in millions of lights. The audience is comprised of people who come to tour the beautifully decorated grounds and come into the church to warm up and listen to the music. Because there is a religious affiliation at the venue, they discourage cutesy holiday songs such as Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer and Frosty the Snowman. It has always been a challenge to come up with a 45-minute program because most arrangements of traditional Christmas carols and Hanukah songs are so short. I also like to include a more substantial piece of repertoire in our programs to help the group grow musically.
    After years of including transcriptions of Handel’s Hallelujah Chorus and For Unto Us a Child is Born, Mozart’s Alleluia from Exultate Jubilate, and movements from the Nutcracker Suite, I decided to broaden our horizons by including transcriptions of pieces that I thought would have broad audience appeal and be musically satisfying for the flute choir to play. Over the past few years, we have included substantial pieces such as Corelli’s Christmas Concerto, Tomas Luis de Victoria’s Four Renaissance Motets, arranged by Phyllis Avidan Louke, Rossini’s La Boutique Fantasque (The Enchanted Toy Shop) arranged by Shaul Ben-Meir, Handel’s Overture and Pastorale from The Messiah, arranged by Robert Maddox, and Respighi’s Ancient Airs and Dances No. 1 arranged by Victoria Jicha. We have also included original music with winter themes such as Secret Language of Snow by Kirk Vogel, Sugar Plums and Mistletoe by Michael Isaacson, A Song of Winter by Phyllis Avidan Louke, and A Winter’s Journey by Lewis Kocher.
    Musical style and pacing are important for these holiday performances. I like to program an upbeat joyful piece for the opening. Favorites include Mozart’s Alleluia from Exultate Jubilate and We Three Kings/Carol of the Bells. My favorites for program closers are We Wish You a Merry Christmas, Handel’s Hallelujah Chorus, and Silent Night. I spread out the traditional Christmas carols and Hanukkah songs throughout the program, and place the longest (and least familiar) piece toward the beginning of the program. I also try to sandwich slower pieces between two faster pieces.
    I particularly liked the pacing and the stylistic variety of the 2014 program. It interspersed traditional holiday songs throughout the program, with upbeat Christmas carols at the beginning and the end. Several different style periods are represented in this program, from Renaissance to Modern. The major piece, Ancient Airs and Dances No. 1, was enjoyed by the audience, as well as the flute choir. I also liked that the transcriptions came from a variety of mediums: orchestral (Ancient Airs and Dances and Nutcracker Suite), choral (Gloria and There Is No Rose) and piano (Jesu Joy! based on Bach’s Jesu, Joy of Man’s Desiring).

The Flute Academy Flute Choirs Pittsburgh
Director: Wendy Webb Kumer
    Wendy Webb Kumer has been directing flute choirs since 1980 and is a frequent guest conductor for regional flute festivals and NFA events. Her favorite concerts are those involving huge flute orchestras of all ages and levels performing in 8–12 harmony parts.

    The Flute Academy Flute Choirs include Flute Loops for middle school flutists, grades 4–8 (5-12 members); Flutations for high school students, grades 9-12 (5-12 members); and City Flutes for college students and adults both amateur and professional (25 to 35 members). We hold 4–6 concerts per year and rehearse on Saturdays during the school year, two semesters of 10 weeks each. In addition to concerts at the end of each semester, the ensembles also perform at churches, senior living facilities, Pittsburgh Flute Club events, and special invitations, including concerts at Heinz Hall for and with the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra.
    My favorite program was a concert that presented every possible combination of players, from age 9 to 91, and featured pieces from every era. The total playing time was just over an hour. A spouse of one of the flutists added some texture, rhythm and spice with digital percussion. The Flute Academy’s special commissioned arrangements, Manuel’s Brazilian Aleluia and Steiner’s A Summer Place are my particular favorites. They are available on our YouTube channel: flutecompulsion
    Choosing the proper repertoire for flute choir performances is both exciting and daunting. It is important to consider the balance of styles, keys, difficulty, length and so forth, and always keep in mind the total rehearsal time allotted and the ability levels of the players. When you select interesting and varied pieces and place them in a pleasing order, your programs will be more enjoyable for players and audience members.
    When selecting pieces for elementary and middle school students, I use short duets, trios, and quartets from collections, introducing many styles from classic transcriptions to folk to pop. Young band flutists are accustomed to playing in unison, so flute choir is often their first opportunity to play in harmony and learn rhythmic independence. Keep the key signatures simple and place pieces in similar keys next to each other. Jumping from one flat to three sharps creates unnecessary trauma and plenty of errors. Use piccolos and low flutes sparingly, but introduce them as young as possible.
    High school repertoire can vary greatly. I program everything from double concerti with piano accompaniment, to classic quartets (Reicha, Kuhlau), to the wide range of flute choir repertoire available today. Choosing a mix of difficulty levels (1.5–3.5) boosts interest (technical challenges) and morale (nearly perfect when sightreading). This age group enjoys fast-paced orchestral transcriptions (Flight of the Bumblebee, Hopak, Comedian’s Gallop, Russian Sailor’s Dance, etc.). They also respond to ballads, folk music, and extended techniques. If you choose a long work in multiple movements, bookend it with short, texturally and rhythmically varied pieces to stay balanced. High school flute enthusiasts love the big flutes.
    Programming for adult flute choir is enjoyable because their attention spans are longer. They are willing and able to play larger works, but keep styles, lengths, and difficulty levels (2-4) varied. Adults often are shy about trying the low flutes, but if encouraged and coached to get started, often end up purchasing one. Adding a rhythm section (electric or string bass, piano or keyboard, percussion) can increase interest and audience size. From originally composed to classic transcriptions, to folk and pop arrangements, adult flutists are ready to go.
    Whatever their age and level, flute choir members enjoy mixing it up, surprising themselves and the audiences with interesting, thoughtful, and diverse programs. Ending with a rousing work will keep everyone humming during the reception and ride home.

The Ohio State University Flute Troupe, Columbus
Director: Katherine Borst Jones
    Katherine Borst Jones, professor of flute at The Ohio State University, is the founder of the OSU High School Flute Workshop and the OSU Flute Troupe. She performs with the Pro-Musica Chamber Orchestra, COSMOS, the Columbus Symphony Orchestra and the New Sousa Band. She has served the National Flute Association as President twice, and is the recipient of the 2011 National Service Award.

    The Ohio State University Flute Troupe has 16-22 members from the university flute studio. They perform one full program and several outreach programs each year. Weekly rehearsals are 50 minutes long.

    The program below was presented at Bluffton University in a beautiful concert hall for a large audience. We were able to showcase everyone in the flute studio for this full-length performance which included music from the Renaissance to the present day. There were pieces for full flute choir as well as a trio, a septet, and an octet. Included were pieces that the audience might recognize (Bizet, Flight of the Bumblebee, and Londonderry Air) as well as pieces that evoked many different emotions, from sorrow to jubilation. There were pieces originally written for flute choir (Galbraith, Hirose) as well as transcriptions or arrangements (Carillo, Rimsky-Korsakov, Praetorius). I often feature pieces that were written for the OSU Flute Troupe (McIntosh, Duffy, Norman). I make it a practice always to present high-quality music, played well, aiming to provide different colors, moods and emotions for the audience and players.
    Flute choir programs should challenge the players as well. On this program the Chris Norman piece gave us a chance to learn traditional style (Irish folk music) including the ornaments. I often include transcriptions of beautiful choral pieces which provide the opportunity to work on pitch and blend in a detailed way.
    This program featured a flute trio that had performed many times for events. Within was performed by a septet that mostly rehearsed on their own. Ohio State has recognizable school songs, and we often use Hang on Sloopy as an encore. We were featured on the OSU website with a video of our performance of this piece done for the song’s 50th anniversary.
    I use programming strategies I learned from Keith Brion that Sousa used with his band. These include featuring major classical pieces, virtuoso solos, operatic arias, section features, pieces by Grainger and others followed by encore marches. A program should include pieces from as many emotions as possible, including patriotic, humorous, sad, happy, jubilant etc. Often the key structure will move up and up for each piece which follows in quick succession. All of this is not possible every time, or even always appropriate, but a fast moving program with much variety of high quality music is essential.

Frost Flute Ensemble University of Miami
Director: Trudy Kane
    Trudy Kane joined the faculty of the Frost School of Music in 2008 after 32 years as principal flute with the Metropolitan Opera. She is the 2015 recipient of the Phillip Frost Award for excellence in teaching.

    The Frost Flute Ensemble has 10-12 members and is made up of undergraduate and graduate student flutists. They prepare one program each year that is presented twice. Rehearsals are held once a week during the fall semester, with a couple of extra rehearsals before the concert.

    My favorite program took place in November 2014. The music for this program was wonderful to prepare. All four pieces were unique and challenging in their own way. The undergraduate students had a chance to play a leading role in a piece all their own in the lovely arrangement of the Gliere Melody by Erv Monroe. I loved performing with the excellent graduate students in something difficult (Daphnis et Chloé by Ravel), and they more than lived up to the challenge. Performing Daphnis with only five of us, and without a conductor, taught everyone a lot.
    The Boheme arrangement brought the style of opera at its best to the students’ attention and was a wonderful way for everyone to learn a new style of making music. Learning the push and pull and naturalness of operatic phrasing (so different from a classical symphony) was a new challenge for everyone. It was the complete second act of La Boheme, including the singers’ parts as well as the orchestra and offstage band. I could not be more proud of the result.
    We also played a new piece by our Dean, Shelton Berg, a tradition I have begun of having our faculty write new pieces for us. This piece included a part for improvisation that was written especially for Ernesto Fernandez, and was once again a completely different style of music than the three other pieces.

Mercer University Flute Choir, Macon, Georgia
Director: Kelly Via
    Kelly Via, piccoloist with the Atlanta Ballet Orchestra and Macon Symphony Orchestra, teaches flute at Mercer University, University of North Georgia and the Atlanta Music Academy. He also directs the Mercer University and Atlanta Metro Youth flute choirs and the University of North Georgia Flute Ensemble.

    The Mercer University Flute Choir has 14 members and is open to all students as well as community members by audition. This semester 11 of our members are undergraduates, two are recent graduates, and one is the mother of a music major. There are four concerts per year with weekly rehearsals for 30 weeks.

    It is wonderful that so many composers are turning their attention to the increasing popularity of the flute choir as a performance medium and the wide range of sonorities and techniques the ensemble provides. The members of the Mercer University Flute Choir especially enjoy playing newer compositions, and they love a challenge.
    Our formal concert this past spring is perhaps my favorite to date. The program included all three compositions written to be premiered at the NFA convention in Chicago (2014) by the Windy City Flute Orchestra. Fanfare 42 by John W.N. Palmer offers a majestic opening to a concert with exciting flourish. Ken Kreuzer’s Mystic Wind begins with haunting melodic lines over lush harmonies followed by a lively section with a Celtic feel. Lower Wacker Drive by Peter Senchuk is a jazzy number inspired by the film The Blues Brothers that is always a crowd pleaser.
    Steven Tung’s River of Life is perfect for a spring concert with its lovely setting of The Water is Wide and Beckett’s Whisper by Ron Korb provides a beautiful reflective moment in any program. We have become especially fond of Vincenzo Sorrentino’s music and Doppia Dimensione is a fine example of his characteristic soaring melodies and countermelodies, interesting harmonies and driving rhythms. Furry Leaves by Gretchen Morse is a beautifully written lyrical piece with soloist. We were delighted to feature Rachel Hauser Nozny, a graduate from 2004 and now a professional performer and college teacher in Alabama.
    Every semester we program at least one big piece and Fire Dance by Valerie Coleman certainly fits the bill. Fire Dance is an exciting and challenging piece for all of the players, and it was an especially big hit with the audience. The piano part is truly optional but it adds great depth and texture to the ensemble.

Atlanta Metro Youth Flute Choir
Director: Kelly Via
    Kelly Via also directs this youth flute choir in addition to the Mercer University ensemble.

    The Atlanta Metro Youth Flute Choir has 23 members and is open to high school and college students by audition. The current membership represents 14 high schools in 8 school districts and one university. They typically perform four or five concerts during the school year. The choir has performed at three NFA Conventions, seven Florida Flute Conventions, three Flute Festivals Mid-South and two GMEA Conferences. Rehearsals are an hour and a half once a week during the school year (approximately 30 rehearsals) for the four or five concerts.
    The students in the AMYFC are exceptional players so I plan their programs the same as I would for an adult choir. Our spring concert last year was a favorite of mine. It began with On Wings of the Wind by Bruce R. Smith, a lively concert opener featuring running sixteenth-note patterns that are passed throughout the choir. James Barnes’ Yorkshire Ballad is a standard in concert band repertoire that has been beautifully arranged for flute choir by Arthur Ephross.
    One of the most challenging pieces on the program was A Celtic Tapestry by John W.N. Palmer featuring exciting rhythmic outer movements separated by a lush ballad that begins in canon form. Joseph Kreines’ arrangement of Gustav Holst’s lovely Ave Maria with its gently flowing lines is especially effective when performed antiphonally. Streaming Green by Nancy Galbraith offered a striking contrast with driving rhythms, crisp articulations, brilliant melodic lines and a thrilling climax.
   Several years ago we started a tradition that gives graduating seniors the chance to choose a favorite piece from their freshman year to add to the final concert of the season. This year the seniors chose The Mayflower Suite by Catherine McMichael, a wonderful three-movement work inspired by the founding of pilgrims’ founding of Plymouth Plantation in 1620. Following the performance of this piece we honored each of the seniors in a special ceremony.
    The concert ended with An Afternoon with the Kiddo, a very clever and entertaining work by Greg Lutz. Due to the time factor we only performed the first three movements. However, the students clearly had a blast playing this piece and it was a great way to end the concert.

Flute Choir of Atlanta
Director: Kathy Farmer
    Kathy Farmer has been involved in flute choirs since 1986, when she founded the Atlanta Flute Ensem-ble, which she still conducts. She also directs the Flute Choir of Atlanta as well as being a member of Perimeter Flutes Quartet, the DeKalb Symphony and the Georgia Philhar-monic. Farmer teaches at Georgia Perimeter College, Greater Atlanta Christian School and privately.

    The Flute Choir of Atlanta has around 20 members and is made up of adult flutists. It is a community ensemble, and many of the members have degrees in music but work in other fields, including as attorneys, legal secretaries, teachers, school principals, biology research and computer communications. The group performs four concerts each year, including a fall concert, Christmas/Hanukah concert, one in early spring and one in early May. We have six or seven rehearsals for the first concert, then two or three for the Christmas concert and five or six for each of the spring performances. When we play at Spoleto or NFA, we have four rehearsals after the regular season ends.

    The Winter Wonders concert was a combination of classical music describing winter and well-known Christmas carols. The progression from Dawn Carol, where we stood around the audience, through the descriptive L’Inverno by Vivialdi, to the modern Secret Language of Snow and well-loved carols was interesting to the audience, and the performers loved the variety. The ensemble demonstrated the qualities of big flutes, C flutes and piccolos with songs that were familiar, so the audience was able to really notice the differences between the instruments. One of the members played her own arrangement of Mary Did You Know. It was one of my favorite programs because there was something for everyone in the audience to enjoy.

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Performance Level
    In the United States the personnel of flute choirs vary from ensemble to ensemble. A few groups are comprised of professional performers while others are a mixture of community members plus university faculty and students. The most common roster is an ensemble composed of students of similar ages and level of advancement that is sponsored by a private flute teacher or hosted by a university. Rarely is the playing level of the flutists equal. Directors should start with an evaluation of the mean playing level of the group and select a program to center around this level. For example, if the average level is a three, most of the selections on the program should be a two or a three with one level four piece as a challenge. Selecting a program with several works that are too difficult will frustrate players, and they will struggle with notes and rhythms and neglect ensemble skills.

Instrumentation
    The average flute choir has between 12 and 20 members. The standard orchestration is three C flute parts, one piccolo, one alto, and one bass (optional contra). With 12 players, the parts should be distributed three on first, three on second, three on third, one on piccolo, and one each on alto and bass for the best balance. For 20 players, five on first, five on second, five on third, one on piccolo, and two each on alto and bass. As the group size increases assign more to the lower parts. If you have more C flutists than are divisible by three, assign the extra flutists equally to parts two and three rather than to part one. Some flute choir repertoire has flutists doubling on percussion instruments. Some compositions may include another instrument such as a cello, string bass, piano or harp or a spoken or sung vocal part.

Programmatic vs. Absolute
    Program music is a term applied to compositions which have a literary, historical, or pictorial reference. Programmatic orchestral works include Hector Berlioz Symphonie fantastique, tone poems by Richard Strauss such as Don Juan, and Debussy Prelude to the Afternoon of a Faun. If there is no suggestion of a program, the music is called absolute or pure music. Most of the instrumental music of the Baroque and Classic periods is absolute (Sonatas, Concertos, Symphonies). A concert of one programmatic composition after another often becomes tiring for listeners.

Original vs. Transcriptions
    The origin of the flute choir may be traced to the recorder consorts of the 16th and 17th centuries. Joseph Bodin de Boismortier (1689-1755) wrote six concertos for five flutes in which he wanted each part to be doubled by several players. In 1796-1798 Franz Joseph Haydn began part three of his oratorio Die Schöpfung (The Creation) with a glorious flute trio. Flutist composers such as Kaspar Kummer (1795-1870) and Friedrich Kuhlau (1786-1832) contributed to the repertoire writing duos, trios, or quartets which flutists continue to perform today with added flutists to each part. However, it has only been since the early 1980s that there has been an influx of compositions written specifically for flute choir. Since most of the repertoire has been written in the last thirty-five years, the similarity of compositional styles and preferred genres has offered limited choices for flute choirs. To provide stylistic and historical contrast, works, especially orchestral and vocal compositions, have been transcribed for flute choir. While directors try to program original works for the flute choir, a transcription inserted here or there offers a wider selection of works to study and perform.

Style and Form
    The four main style periods of chamber music are Baroque, Classic, Romantic and Contemporary. While it is possible to successfully a program entirely from one era, a composition is usually better featured if there is a work in a contrasting style before and after it. Consider the proficiency level of the group and the sophistication of the audience when determining an appropriate balance.
    The same forms found in the symphonic tradition also exist in flute choir chamber music. These include dances, marches, sonatas, suites, theme and variations, and concertos as well as Romantic character pieces. Select a variety of styles and forms for an interesting performance. One option might be to organize works from newer to older or older to newer.

Key Relationships
    If all of the compositions are in the same key, listeners’ and performers’ ears become dulled. One well-known programmer reminded his students if the first piece is in D major, the last piece should not be. Never play two pieces in a row that are in the same key. A few years ago I presented a flute recital titled Homage to Bach. However, there were no pieces by Bach on the program. While you might argue that Bach influenced every composer, the homage referred to letters that spelled Bach’s name – Bb, A, C, B natural. The four pieces on the program were in this key order. Afterwards several audience members successfully figured out the theme. To paraphrase Nadia Boulanger, “Play (program) all your music in a way that the audience will quite naturally feel intelligent.”

Duration and Dynamics
    Anshel Brusilow suggests in his book Shoot the Conductor: Too Close to Monteux, Szell, and Ormandy (University of North Texas Press) that it is best to select between 80 and 85 minutes of music. This works well for an orchestra with a large variety of instruments, but for a flute choir, a little under an hour of music plus a short intermission works better. Brusilow’s programming strategy is to program pieces in the following order: loud, soft, loud, intermission, soft, loud. Other orchestral conductors program in the OCIS format. This stands for overture, concerto, intermission, and symphony. An OCIS program for flute choir could be Tchaikovsky’s The Nutcracker Overture, Mozart’s Concerto for Flute in D, K. 314, intermission, and Benjamin Britten’s A Simple Symphony. Another popular programming strategy is to program a composition that is unknown, one that is sort-of-known, and one that is well-known. This type of programming helps educate the audience without alienating them with entirely unfamiliar music.

Themed Programs
    Halloween and Holiday concerts are always a favorite of performers and audiences. Some groups dress in costumes based on the theme and encourage audience members to do the same. Some use sets, pumpkins, Christmas trees, and candles to further the ambiance. Often one or more of the pieces on the program may be a sing-a-long.
    For the Las Vegas National Flute Association convention, I brought two flute choirs to perform. One group’s program was titled By George. Not only was I the ensemble coach for this group, but every piece on the program was written by a composer who had George someplace in his name. Included were Georg Philip Telemann, George Gershwin, and Thom Ritter George among others. The other flute choir performed the program 5, 4, 3, 2, 1. The first piece was in five parts, the next in four, etc., and we concluded by playing the J.S. Bach Partita in A Minor: Sarabande in unison.

The Goal
    The objective for a flute choir should be to perform together as friends and colleagues and share the joys of playing music. Another aim is to elevate the playing level of members and refine ensemble skills. For audiences flute choirs should attempt to educate and entertain. Creative programming can help accomplish all of these goals.  

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