Flautknight, for flute quintet

This piece was composed for the competition organized by the US Flutists’ journal, The Flute View in honor of Sir James Galway’s 80th birthday and the 30th Galway Flute Festival. As a winner, the piece was premiered at the Festival, in Weggis, Switzerland, on 24th July 2019. It was performed by Elisabet Franch and Barbara Siesel (flutes), Aslihan Andd (piccolo), Andrea ‘Fluterscooter’ Fisher (alto flute) and Viviana Guzman (bass flute), with Sir James Galway in attendance as guest of honor.

When creating the piece, I wanted to write something that would pay homage to Sir James Galway as an iconic flute player and musician that brought the flute to the wider world through his recordings of popular classical music. As a flute player myself, I was introduced to his music as a child, and I looked to my first memories of hearing ‘the Man with the Golden Flute’ as inspiration. The result is a piece that combines eleven different musical motifs, each of which represents Sir James.

(Katrina Penman)

Flautknight, for flute quintet – Youtube