Studio 113 Presents: Evan Fraser
Flutist Evan Fraser performs Salvatore Sciarrino's "L'Opera per Flauto."
Salvatore Sciarrino (b. 1947) is a composer uniquely committed to expanding the technical and expressive capabilities of the flute. His first seven pieces for solo flute, composed between 1977 and 1990, form his L’Opera per Flauto, the focus of the present performance. Through extensive collaboration with flautist Roberto Fabbriciani, Sciarrino has developed sonic and affective spaces seldom explored with such rigor in the rest of the flute repertoire. For roughly 60 minutes, the flutist undertaking this project is tasked with bringing these worlds to life with largely unfamiliar techniques and compositional tools.
These pieces exist “in the cracks,” so to speak, in notable ways. Each piece dwells in softness for long spans. As such, much of this music may make the listener question what they hear, heightening the distinction between real and perceived silences. Sciarrino uses extended flute techniques – including key clicks, tongue rams, whistling, timbral trills, harmonic bursts, wind tone, inhalation, and multiphonics – almost exclusively as his sonic materials; sounds often cast off as superfluities or mistakes in Common Practice repertoire become generators of these sonic spaces. Each piece is an exercise in contrasts for the performer, who must produce both profound stillnesses and visceral outbursts while navigating new forms of virtuosity.
A list of pieces, with translated titles and approximate lengths, follows:
I. All’aure in una lontananza – “To the auras in the distance” (11:00)
II. Hermes (11:00)
III. Come vengono prodotti gli incantesimi? – “How are spells produced?” (7:30, no pause)
IV. Canzona di ringraziamento – “Song of thanksgiving” (5:00)
V. Venere che le Grazie la fioriscono – “Venus whom the Graces adorn” (8:00)
VI. L’orizzonte luminoso di Aton – “The luminous horizon of Aten” (9:00)
VII. Fra i testi dedicati alle nubi – “Among the texts dedicated to clouds” (11:00)
FREE and Open to the Public