Music For Flute by Brian Ferneyhough

19 Jun

Written by Mark Keresman
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Brian Ferneyhough (b. 1943) is a classical composer whose music for solo flute may very likely be of interest to fans of avant/free jazz and improvised music. All of his (mostly atonal) compositions here make extensive use of the timbral capabilities of the flute, and ace flutist Kolbeinn Bjarnason is up to the challenges posed by the music, with "Carceri d’Invenzione" and "Mnemosyne" as perhaps the finest examples here. The former is like ex-Art Ensemble of Chicago windman Joseph Jarman deconstructing Italian baroque music, the latter an orchestra of bass flutes (overdubbed) sounding like a rainforest full of bird-songs played back at half-speed. Music For Flute is not for flute-fanciers who like their sounds "sweet" - but if you’re taste runs to flute player/composers James Newton, Robert Dick, Henry Threadgill (especially!) and the aforementioned Mr. Jarman, this disc is worth investigating.