McLearnon- Seconds on State Street for Flute Ensemble
Composer: Gareth McLearnon
General playing score and 4 concert flute parts, 2 alto flute parts and 2 bass flute parts
Publisher: Gareth McLearnon
About
Seconds on State Street is a rhythmic, cool and slightly bluesy work for flute ensemble, written for and commissioned by the Chicago Flute Club.
The piece is unmistakably about Chicago, but not in a literal postcard sort of way. Its musical DNA comes from a mixture of wordplay, Morse code, major seconds, food culture, low-flute colour and a rhythmically exuberant celebration of the city itself.
t begins almost like a beacon or signal, built around the interval of a major second. That opening idea eventually became the basis for a rhythmic spelling of C-H-I-C-A-G-O in Morse code, which runs through the piece in several different forms.
As with much of my ensemble writing, the four concert-flute parts are deliberately split between two Advanced parts and two more accessible Intermediate parts. But after becoming increasingly addicted to the thicker low end I had explored in Aurora and DEEP DISH, I doubled the Alto and Bass Flute writing here, allowing for a richer, deeper and more harmonically complex ensemble sound.
The piece lasts approximately 6 minutes, is highly rhythmic throughout, becomes increasingly exuberant as it progresses, and naturally finishes with a BAM!
The piece includes extended techniques.
-Gareth McLearnon
Difficulty
- Flute 1: Advanced – Advanced High School / Pre-College
- Flute 2: Advanced – Advanced High School / Pre-College
- Flute 3: Intermediate – Strong Middle School
- Flute 4: Intermediate – Strong Middle School
- Alto Flute 1: Advanced
- Alto Flute 2: Advanced
- Bass Flute 1: Advanced
- Bass Flute 2: Advanced, with optional Contrabass material
Note from composer
The four concert-flute parts follow a principle that runs through much of my ensemble writing: Flutes 1 and 2 carry the more demanding material, while Flutes 3 and 4 are deliberately more approachable.
My aim is always for every player to feel engaged and stretched, but nobody to feel overwhelmed. The more accessible parts are never simply filler, and every player remains musically involved in the character and momentum of the piece.
The doubled Alto and Bass writing represents something of an evolution in my flute-orchestra sound. A conventional flute choir naturally becomes harmonically restricted at the bottom because the concert flute stops at around middle C. By using two independent Alto and two independent Bass Flute parts, I can build much thicker chords and more complex harmony below the concert-flute register.
The result is a richer and, to my ears, much more satisfying bottom end.
About Gareth McLearnon
Gareth McLearnon is an internationally renowned flutist, composer, arranger and educator from Belfast, Northern Ireland, and based in Strasbourg, France. His career has taken him across six continents as a soloist, orchestral and chamber musician, recording artist and teacher.
Principal Flute of the Heritage Orchestra since 2009 and a Wm. S. Haynes Artist, he has performed and taught at leading conservatoires, festivals and concert venues around the world. His recording work spans film and television, multi-award-winning and multi-million-selling video games, library music and commercial album releases.
