The Ives/Flute Project: Week 1

While listening to the rare historical recordings at Yale University in the fall of 2018, I heard parts of the live performance of the concert given by the Yale Theater Orchestra in 1974, conducted by James Sinclair. The album, Old Songs Deranged: 13 First Recordings; Music for Theatre Orchestra, became the product of that concert. Mists, the third work, caught my immediate attention because it was a haunting, lyrical flute solo with chamber orchestra accompaniment. At my interview with Mr. Sinclair, I told him how much I loved the piece and we got to talking about the flute and Ives. He said something to the effect that no one had ever written about the flute in Ives' music and perhaps I should do that and present my ideas at flute conferences.

Moments like these where opportunities fall in your lap do not come often or by chance, so I decided to follow my instincts.

This week I began my journey with the music of Ives and the flute by creating three lists using A Descriptive Catalogue of the Music of Charles Ives, authored by James Sinclair.

I wanted to know what works included in their instrumentation just flute(s), just piccolo(s), or both flute and piccolo. I noted many of the pieces that contained flute or piccolo also shared titles with Songs Ives' composed, so I also created a list correlating the two. As a performer, knowing the lyrics behind an instrumental piece gives tremendous insight to what the music is about.

Next week, as I go through these lists, I am going to look for similarities in the types of music Ives' employs the flute and/or piccolo. Because the lists are extensive, I may choose to focus on one genre, taking into account how large a role the flute plays in the work (e.g.: solo lines, structure, dynamic level). Listening to multiple performances of the same piece will help make these kinds of judgements. I will keep a spreadsheet of these listenings, with notes about the recordings.

Another task I began this week was to search for other dissertations which may have already researched the subject of the role of the flute in Ives' music. I have been searching multiple ways, attempting to find a combination of words/refining tools that are the most efficient, and have not uncovered a paper yet to address this subject. However, I have found a paper describing the role of the trumpet in the music of Ives. I have also discovered dissertations published since the year 2000, that have talked about performance practice in Ives' music, analysis of his works, or the role of the flute in music that is not Ives, all of which give me ideas on ways I can approach this subject.

Next week, I will continue my search to back up the claim James Sinclair made at our interview, to be certain my work is original.