“Flute Music of New York” – Nine Pieces for Flute Alone by Female Composers (1974-2015)
“Flute Music of New York” is a collaboration between American Composers Alliance and New York Women Composers, Inc., and it features nine works for solo flute by the overlapping members of both organizations. Some of these works are newly presented here, typeset from manuscripts or re-engraved to fix errors. One work, Gina Genova’s “For Solo Flute”, was recovered during the creation of the anthology. Two works are relatively well-known; attendees or followers of the National Flute Association will recognize Marilyn Bliss’s Murali from NFA competitions, and fans of Nina Assimakopoulos will recognize Margaret Fairly-Kennedy’s “Spirit Man” from the performances that bloomed after Assimakopoulos’s 2015 album Vayu was released.
From the perspective of a western classical flutist, all nine works are attractive and share a general attention to motivic development. None are strictly atonal, though several works (Bliss’s “Encounter”, Ann Silsbee’s “Three Chants”) develop more through structure than through natural or synthetic diatonicism. Sarah Meneely-Kyder’s “Air and Water” drift melodically; the first improvisationally, the second, song-like. The most recent work, Joyce Hope Suskind’s “Celebration”, stands out as a rich venture into a late Baroque/early Classical style.
National Flute Association 2023 Newly Published Music Competition Finalist – Solo Flute Category
Contents:
Elizabeth R. Austin – Sonata Marilyn Bliss – Encounter
Marilyn Bliss – Phantom Breeze from Wind Songs Marilyn Bliss – Murali
Gina Genova – For Solo Flute
Margaret Farlie-Kennedy – Spirit Man
Sarah Meneely-Kyder – Air and Water from The Four Elements
Ann Silsbee – Three Chants (for single player with c flute, alto flute and bass flute; includes quarter tones, multiphonics and voice part to be sung by flute player)
Joyce Hope Suskind – Celebration
