Programme Note

Three Matisse Impressions, in its original version for recorder and piano, was completed in 1993, and is dedicated to Alix Denzler, two of whose paintings were given to the composer and his wife. The work was composed as a small reciprocal gesture for these paintings (the artist is an enthusiastic recorder player). It is no coincidence that the title of the pieces refers to three well-known paintings by Matisse, an artist for whom the composer and the dedicatee share mutual admiration. The work is in three movements:

Pastoral – Lux, Calme et Volupté – La Danse.

In 1997, the composer rescored the work for recorder, strings, harp and percussion. Then in 2020 the composer made a new version for flute and piano specially for a new album of his instrumental music which was released on the Naxos label. It is dedicated to the Halle orchestra’s principal flute, Amy Yule.


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Reviews

The opening work on this splendid Naxos disc … is another example of a work written for recorder and repurposed for the flute … The disc as a whole makes a superb introduction to his art …

Guy Rickards, Klassisk.com, March 2022

For me, he has struck a great stylistic balance between the Impressionism of Debussy, a gentle Expressionism and Stravinskian primitivism. The shimmering Luxe, Calme et Volupté is a little masterpiece of the composer’s craft. The cleverly devised scales reflect the seductive charm of Matisse’s painting.

John France, MusicWeb International

Written: 2020

Instrumentation:
Flute and piano

Genre: Instrumental

Publisher: Forsyth

Duration: 10'