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Track(s) taken from CDA67725

Morceau de concours

composer
14 July 1898; originally for flute and piano

Jaime Martín (flute), Alison Nicholls (harp)
Recording details: November 2007
St Martin's Church, East Woodhay, Berkshire, United Kingdom
Produced by Philip Hobbs
Engineered by Philip Hobbs
Release date: August 2008
Total duration: 3 minutes 10 seconds

Cover artwork: Windy Day near Blainville. Rosemary Hunt (1937-2003)
Reproduced by kind permission of Richard Townley
 


Fauré’s Morceau (1898) is a little gem written as a test piece for the flute while the composer was director at the Paris Conservatoire. It formed part of a subtle campaign on his part to move the conservatoire away from placing what he viewed as too much emphasis on pure virtuosity. His wish was for an appreciation that included aspects such as style, rhythm and phrasing; in other words, musical expression. His love of melody is clearly on display here as the Morceau arabesques its way beautifully through its three-minute duration. The harp again takes on the role of piano with little adjustment. The manuscript is dated 14 July 1898 so perhaps Fauré was taking advantage of his day off on Bastille Day.

from notes by Alison Nicholls © 2008

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