Among the recent profusion of flute CDs, this disc of works by Louis Moyse easily might qualify as sleeper of the year. Few listeners likely are aware that the 90-year-old Moyse, renowned as a music editor, arranger, and flutist (with an even more famous flutist father, Marcel), wrote nearly 100 compositions–and, thanks to the commitment of flutist Karen Kevra and pianist Paul Orgel, we now have the first commercial recording of three of his more important works.
All of these pieces were written late in Moyse’s life, and they bear the mark of a superb craftsman who absorbed the styles of many better-known composers–Martinu (Moyse’s self-proclaimed chief influence), Poulenc, Prokofiev, and the entire French flute composer pantheon–and who made something of his own without ever sliding into the syrupy French style so prevalent among the Taffenel/Gaubert set. While all the music here “feels” familiar, you quickly realize that it’s highly original and difficult to pigeon-hole. Taking Moyse’s word for it, Martinu does resonate throughout, especially in the first sonata, which shares rhythmic and harmonic similarities to the great Czech composer’s own work in the same genre.
In both sonatas presented here, Moyse demonstrates structural consistency, as each of the four movements is roughly identical in spirit and tempo. Both works possess scherzos aswarm with herky-jerky and accented triplet patterns, with “Flight of the Bumblebee” runs coursing through the flute part. The Adagio sections share a sense of mystery and tranquility. Moyse relies less on melodic structure as the basis of any of these movements, preferring to focus his creativity on clever contrapuntal gestures, coloristic devices for the flute, and rhythmic energy.
The middle work–Introduction, Theme, and Variations–is the true masterpiece on this disc. Written in 1982 with an eye to Schubert’s famous “Trockne Blumen” variations set, its remarkable Introduction alone would be worth the price of the CD. In what amounts to a giant cadenza for flute, Moyse explores his apparent fascination with Japanese timbres to startling result, featuring alternating vibrato and vibratoless passages, limpid harmonic notes, flutter-tongued trills, and difficult technical runs. The theme is a sort of threnody for the flute with light piano pentatonic flourishes that mirror the orientalism of the Introduction. The other variations do not overtly highlight the theme but rather continuously refresh the work with wildly different styles and changing tempos.
Kevra and Orgel could not make a better case for this neglected music, for this nicely engineered recording has all the hallmarks of a true labor of love. It is fair to say that these works really are duos for flute and piano, insofar as the piano part is certainly as challenging as the flute’s. While at times her vibrato tends to the “eager” side, Kevra has a tremendous sound, tight articulation, and the ability to reproduce all of Moyse’s careful coloristic markings with ease and assurance. For his part, Orgel’s masterful and delicately nuanced accompaniment delineates Moyse’s other career as an accomplished, professional pianist, since the pianist here has an equal opportunity to shine (and he does!).
