Download Three Fantasies on Irish Folk Melodies for Solo Bass Flute

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FANTASIES
ON IRISH FOLK MELODIES
Robert Fruehwald
1998
Three Fantasies
on Irish Folk Melodies
My wife is a harpist. She became interested in Irish music because it helps her students to
learn to play more naturally and freely. Through working with Irish musicians she also came
to have an appreciation for the beauty of traditional Irish melodies. Because my wife teaches
in our home, I have inadvertently become extremely familiar with many of these melodies
and have grown to love them.
While this music is playable on the flute, I really believe that it sounds better on the bass
flute. The bass flute is not simply a larger version of the “soprano” flute, it does in fact have
different acoustical properties. While the low register of the bass flute has a rich focused
sound, the sound becomes increasingly thin as one ascends into the upper register. Many
people believe that this limits the artistic value of the instrument, that the bass flute is only
useful in its lowest register. The thinness of the sound of the bass flute’s high register is not
unlike the sound produced by ethnic flutes. Performers on these instruments take advantage
of the variety of colors available on their instruments. If a particular pitch is weak or thin,
the player uses that pitch for musically expressive purposes. I like the bass flute for this
com-position because it is capable of producing a variety of timbres much like those associated with traditional Irish flute playing. The very fact that the bass flute is different from
the “soprano” flute, that it has uneven registers, makes it ideal for this piece.
Notes for the Player
The opening and closing movements are based on slow airs and should be played with some
rhythmic freedom. Each places the original melody in the middle of the movement encased
by an introduction and a coda. In O’Carolan’s Lament, the introduction is based on a few
optional extended techniques. The first three notes should be played with the same
fingering and one should slur seamlessly between them. To get from the “B b ” to the “F” blow
more air but do not tighten the embouchure too much (that would cause the “A” to sound
rather than the “F”). Once the “F” begins to sound, then the embouchure can be tightened
to focus the sound. It is desirable to have a slight portamento between the “F” and the “A.”
To produce the following trills use the fingering indicated (a high “F” fingering with the “E”
key trilled). This will produce microtonal trills. Do not adjust the intonation of these trills.
The portamento at the end of the introduction is produced by slowly lifting the “G” key
while crescendoing.
The introduction and coda of the last movement, My Lagan Love, make extensive use of
optional harmonics. Use the fingering indicated by the triangular note heads to produce the
given pitches. Two unusual fingerings are suggested. The fingering for the high “G # ” and the
“E” is suggested simply because that fingering makes it easier to play the passage smoothly.
(notes continued on last page)
A FREE VERSION OF THIS SCORE IS AVAILABLE FOR LEGAL DOWNLOAD FROM:
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F a n t a s t i e s — F r u e h w a l d
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The fingering for the “C” creates a muffled tone reminiscent of a wooden flute. The last
three measures of the piece are simply an elaboration of the tonic pitch. I wanted to accent
the high “D,” then have the player portamento down to the low “D.” If done slowly enough,
the individual pitches of the harmonic series can be heard. After some experimentation, I
decided to add the high “A.” This makes the harmonics easier to control and it allows more
harmonics to sound. Accent the high “A” and as you back away from it allow the pitch linger,
for just an instant, on each of the harmonics. Ideally each would sound, but it is not a disaster
if one is skipped. The important thing is to make it sound natural.
The middle movement, Tobin’s Jig, should be very rhythmic. I suggest putting a lot of breath
behind the accents (even pushing from the diaphragm). The effect in the opening passage is
that the player is improvising and goes off on a bit of a tangent. As the player realizes that
he/she is deviating from the tune, the performer “trails off ” and then begins again with full
force. The end of the theme (where the score is marked “no phrase break”) should flow
directly into the second theme without a pause or ritard. The “trio” makes use of some
optional extended techniques. It begins with a series of D Major arpeggios based on a special
set of fingerings. These fingerings should be used for each three note group (with the exception of the final “D” in the first ending which should be fingered normally). The flutist overblows these fingerings to produce the harmonics indicated. While these harmonics need to
be rhythmic, the pitches need not be the exact ones indicated. The desired effect is one of a
harmonic sweep, if the fingerings indicated are used, some pitch in the desired harmonic
series will automatically sound.
Toward the bottom of page 2, key clicks are indicated (+). The player should hit the key hard
in order to produce a percussive sound at the same time as blowing the note indicated.
Finger the “F # ” with the middle finger (the “E” key) and slap down both the “E” and “F” keys
to produce the “E.” The section ends with a kind of microtonal trill (finger an “E” and trill
the “E b ” key). This is in imitation of the finger vibrato used by Irish traditional flutists. Begin
the trill slowly and get faster, crescendo to build excitement going into the recapitulation.
The effect in the last three measures is achieved by repeating the fingerings given. Overblow
to produce the harmonics. This need not be exactly rhythmic (playing strict 32ⁿ� notes at
such a fast tempo would be difficult) but should be as fast as is practical. Again, the passage
does not need to be precise. The effect is that of a “blur” of sound.
All of the extended techniques in the piece are optional. While I believe that the timbres
created using these techniques are often quite beautiful, I am also aware that they do not
work equally well for all players on all instruments. Performers should feel free to omit any
or all of the extended techniques. I would much rather have a comfortable, musical performance of the work than one with all the “right effects.” I would recommend however that
the 32ⁿ� notes at the end of the second movement be played with the fingerings indicated. I
don’t believe that most players will be able to play them fast enough using the conventional
fingerings.