12 Fantasias for solo flute (Telemann)
Encyclopedia
Georg Philipp Telemann
's 12 Fantasias for Solo Flute were published in Hamburg
in 1732–33. This is one of Telemann's collections of music for unaccompanied instruments, the others being thirty-six fantasias for solo harpsichord published in Hamburg in 1732–33, twelve for solo violin
published in 1735, and a set of twelve fantasias for solo viola da gamba, published in the same year, but that is currently lost.
This work comprises the following:
The collection is arranged by key
, progressing more or less stepwise from A major to G minor. Telemann deliberately avoided keys that are impractical on the one-key flute, i.e. B major, C minor, F minor and F-sharp major. There are two ways to view the overall structure of the collection: one way, in which the work is divided into two parts, is suggested by the fact that Fantasia 7 begins with a French overture
, indicating a start of a new section. This device was also later used by Johann Sebastian Bach
in Variation 16 of his Goldberg Variations
. Another was proposed by scholar Wolfgang Hirschmann—there are four modal groups of three fantasias: major-minor-minor, major-major-minor, major-minor-major, and minor-major-minor.
Telemann's solo flute fantasias are alone in the entire Baroque repertoire to include movements seemingly impossible on flute: fugue
s (fantasias 2, 6, and 8–11), a French overture (fantasia 7) and a passacaglia
(fantasia 5).
Georg Philipp Telemann
Georg Philipp Telemann was a German Baroque composer and multi-instrumentalist. Almost completely self-taught in music, he became a composer against his family's wishes. After studying in Magdeburg, Zellerfeld, and Hildesheim, Telemann entered the University of Leipzig to study law, but eventually...
's 12 Fantasias for Solo Flute were published in Hamburg
Hamburg
-History:The first historic name for the city was, according to Claudius Ptolemy's reports, Treva.But the city takes its modern name, Hamburg, from the first permanent building on the site, a castle whose construction was ordered by the Emperor Charlemagne in AD 808...
in 1732–33. This is one of Telemann's collections of music for unaccompanied instruments, the others being thirty-six fantasias for solo harpsichord published in Hamburg in 1732–33, twelve for solo violin
12 Fantasias for solo violin (Telemann)
Georg Philipp Telemann's 12 Fantasias for Solo Violin was published in Hamburg in 1735. It is one of Telemann's collections of music for unaccompanied instruments, the others being twelve fantasias for solo flute and thirty-six for solo harpsichord that were published in Hamburg in 1732–33,...
published in 1735, and a set of twelve fantasias for solo viola da gamba, published in the same year, but that is currently lost.
This work comprises the following:
- Fantasia in A major (Vivace—Allegro)
- Fantasia in A minor (Grave—Vivace—Adagio—Allegro)
- Fantasia in B minor (Largo—Vivace—Largo—Vivace—Allegro)
- Fantasia in B-flat major (Andante—Allegro—Presto)
- Fantasia in C major (Presto—Largo—Presto—Dolce—Allegro—Allegro)
- Fantasia in D minor (Dolce—Allegro—Spirituoso)
- Fantasia in D major (Alla francese—Presto)
- Fantasia in E minor (Largo—Spirituoso—Allegro)
- Fantasia in E major (Affettuoso—Allegro—Grave—Vivace)
- Fantasia in F-sharp minor (A Tempo giusto—Presto—Moderato)
- Fantasia in G major (Allegro—Adagio—Vivace—Allegro)
- Fantasia in G minor (Grave—Allegro—Allegro—Dolce—Allegro—Presto)
The collection is arranged by key
Key (music)
In music theory, the term key is used in many different and sometimes contradictory ways. A common use is to speak of music as being "in" a specific key, such as in the key of C major or in the key of F-sharp. Sometimes the terms "major" or "minor" are appended, as in the key of A minor or in the...
, progressing more or less stepwise from A major to G minor. Telemann deliberately avoided keys that are impractical on the one-key flute, i.e. B major, C minor, F minor and F-sharp major. There are two ways to view the overall structure of the collection: one way, in which the work is divided into two parts, is suggested by the fact that Fantasia 7 begins with a French overture
French overture
The French overture is a musical form widely used in the Baroque period. Its basic formal division is into two parts, which are usually enclosed by double bars and repeat signs. They are complementary in styles , and the first ends with a half-cadence that requires an answering structure with a...
, indicating a start of a new section. This device was also later used by Johann Sebastian Bach
Johann Sebastian Bach
Johann Sebastian Bach was a German composer, organist, harpsichordist, violist, and violinist whose sacred and secular works for choir, orchestra, and solo instruments drew together the strands of the Baroque period and brought it to its ultimate maturity...
in Variation 16 of his Goldberg Variations
Goldberg Variations
The Goldberg Variations, BWV 988, is a work for harpsichord by Johann Sebastian Bach, consisting of an aria and a set of 30 variations. First published in 1741, the work is considered to be one of the most important examples of variation form...
. Another was proposed by scholar Wolfgang Hirschmann—there are four modal groups of three fantasias: major-minor-minor, major-major-minor, major-minor-major, and minor-major-minor.
Telemann's solo flute fantasias are alone in the entire Baroque repertoire to include movements seemingly impossible on flute: fugue
Fugue
In music, a fugue is a compositional technique in two or more voices, built on a subject that is introduced at the beginning in imitation and recurs frequently in the course of the composition....
s (fantasias 2, 6, and 8–11), a French overture (fantasia 7) and a passacaglia
Passacaglia
The passacaglia is a musical form that originated in early seventeenth-century Spain and is still used by contemporary composers. It is usually of a serious character and is often, but not always, based on a bass-ostinato and written in triple metre....
(fantasia 5).