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The Flute
The flute is played sidewise, unlike
the recorder, held straight forward. The flute,
first appeared in the 13th century, gradually driving the wooden recorder
away from the symphonic orchestra, until Haydn
finally excluded it. Its greater volume and
clearer sounds made many composers favor it over the quiet, intimate recorder.
An early known piece for this instrument is the Badinari,
of Bach's
Suite No. 2 for flute and orchestra.
In
the Classic
and Romantic
periods, the flute was very popular and many
composers wrote solos for it. Haydn
(sonata for flute
and harpsichord) Mozart
(Concerto in
G, Concerto in
D and Double
Concerto for flute and harp) and Beethoven
(the Serenade
for flute, violin and viola) are only few
of the composers who wrote for this instrument, yet the best known piece
is Debussy's
prelude "L'apres midi d'un Faune",
in which the flute opens by playing the main theme. Debussy also wrote
the "Syrinx"
for solo flute.
A composer name Quantz
accomplished, undoubtfully, the world record
in flute composition - over 300 concerti
for flute, written for Fridrich
the Great, the King of Prussia
(who was an excellent flutist).
The system of leverages and stops
developed by Thoebald Bohm,
a virtuoso flutist from Bavaria,
made the instrument more comfortable for playing and enhanced playing options
in different scales.
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Composers
Bach
Haydn
Mozart
Beethoven
Debussy
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