Vocalise Op34 #14 by Sergei Rachmaninoff (1873 – 1943)
Arranged for Flute and String Quartet by Kyril Magg
Instrumentation: flute (opt. 2nd flute part for last nine measures), 2 violins, viola, cello
Score and parts
This arrangement includes the option of using a second flutist who plays offstage during the final nne measures of the composition. This alternate instrumentation only affects the nostalgic final statement of the opening theme, which otherwise occurs in the string accompaniment, interwoven with the soloist’s closing countermelody. A second flutist who is physically (and therefore acoustically) separated from the other performers recaptures the original timbre of this theme while introducing a remote tonal perspective that reflects the ending’s sadness and resignation.
