Preambolo

Description

Preambolo

Preambolo and preludio are both Italian terms for a piece of music, designed to be played as an introduction to another composition, such as a fugue or a suite. The convention dates from the baroque era. Later on composers used the word as a title for pieces in their own right, so-called character pieces, written in ternary form, suitable for the expression of two contrasting moods - a dramatic and a lyrical.

Preambolo by Hans Magne Græsvold is one of very few pieces written for an ensemble of flutes by a Norwegian composer, and also a significant contribution to the existing standard repertoire for flute choir.

In this work Græsvold explores the colours of the flute sound as the music moves through different characters and types of harmony. Dramatic passages are followed by lyrical and melodic lines that require beauty of sound as well as balance within the harmonic framework.

In the middle section, Græsvold presents a fragment of the catholic hymn Praedicasti Dei care. A cadenza (first flute) connects the middle and last section, and adds variety to a piece that contains both musical depth and sheer beauty. The score is carefully arranged with eight equally interesting and important parts concerning rhythmical entries, and the leading of melodic lines.

Preambolo was premiered at the Third International Flute Convention in Nice, France in 2010 by Agder University Flute Ensemble, directed by Jørn Eivind Schau (Norway).