Flute Duos, Trios, Quartets

Duo for Two Flutes, by Matt Samolis

Contemporary Composition for Two Flutes, PDF $17.99

Duo for Two Flutes was written using twelve tone techniques.  The original tone row was divided in half, with each set of six tones being used to generate one of the flute parts.  Frequently changing time signatures reflect compositional organization of the pitches, and does not establish meter.  The piece has a playful, somewhat mechanical feel. To listen to bits of a recording of Duo for Two Flutes performed by Matt Samolis and Peter H. Bloom, click on the icons below.

Duo for Two Flutes audio 2

Duo for Two Flutes audio 4

Score for Two Flutes, 8 pages; Total, 11 pages.

Polacca Brillante, Op.72, by Carl Maria von Weber

Anonymous Arrangement for Two Flutes

Gassett Collection - New Edition by C.A.Vater/Noteworthy Sheet Music

Flute 1 Part, Flute 2 Part, and Score, PDF $7.99

Carl Maria von Weber (1786-1826) was a German piano virtuoso and prolific composer who made major, influential contributions to many kinds of music and is widely credited with being a founder of the Romantic school.  Weber's rousing Polacca Brillante in E major, Op.72 (alternatively known as L'Hilarité or Grande Polonaise brillante) was written originally for piano solo.  It was composed and first published in 1819, and was later transcribed by Liszt for piano and orchestra.

We came across an anonymous arrangement of this piece, a duet for two flutes, among the print copies included in the Gassett Collection.  The duet is great fun for flutists, so we created a renotated edition of the arrangement, with the goal of modernizing the format and correcting some likely inaccuracies.  Our new edition includes a score at no extra charge as well as the two flute parts.

For additional information about the Gassett Collection, please see see our article An Introduction to the Gassett Collection.

Fl1/Fl2 Score, 8 pages; Flute 1 part, 4 pages; Flute 2 part, 4 pages; Total, 22 pages.

Three Concertante Duets for Two Flutes, by Eugène Walckiers

Gassett Collection - Facsimile Edition by C.A.Vater/Noteworthy Sheet Music, with a Foreword by Peter H. Bloom

5th Book of Duets

Duetto 1: Flute 1 Part and Flute 2 Part, PDF $10.50

Duetto 2: Flute 1 Part and Flute 2 Part, PDF $10.50

Duetto 3: Flute 1 Part and Flute 2 Part, PDF $12.00

Eugène Walckiers (1793-1866) studied composition at the Paris Conservatoire with Anton Reicha and became a masterful, inventive, and prolific composer and arranger of 19th century chamber music.  Walckiers was also a flutist, having been a protégé of the legendary Tulou.  Rockstro, in his Treatise on the Flute (London, 1889), paid great tribute to Walckiers when he wrote: "The duets, trios and quartets of Walckiers belong to the highest school of French art, and prove their composer to have been a man of real genius.  They are exceedingly imaginative, occasionally rather eccentric, yet always elegant, charming, and scholarly."

Rosamund Plummer wrote an independent review of Noteworthy Sheet Music's edition of Walckiers' Duetto 1 which was reproduced on the NSM website after first being published by Flute Focus.   

Jason Ng & Campbell Wang won a Gold Award in the Secondary Duet Class of the 2012 New Zealand Woodwind Competition for their performance of Eugène Walckiers' 5th Book of Duets—Duetto I, published by Noteworthy Sheet Music.

For additional information about the Gassett Collection, please see see our article An Introduction to the Gassett Collection.

Three Four-Note Flute Duets, Op.448b, by John D. McDonald

Contemporary Composition for Two Flutes, PDF $2.99

"Composed for Ethel Farny and her flute students at the Rivers Music School, these short duets sprout initially from the first flute/violin duet of Several Strands, Op. 448a.  This Grazioso is indeed made from only four pitches. Similarly, Murmurando confines itself to a four-note knot until its final dyad.  The third duet, Con Eleganza, stretches the four-note concept a bit more. Each instrument has its own four-pitch pattern, and a coda leaves the four-note idea behind all together, concluding the set with six slower, somewhat more chromatic bars that could very well lead to future music of more emotional complexity.  Perhaps there will be more duets to come."    ― John McDonald, November 2009

John McDonald is a member of The Mockingbird Trio, directs the Tufts Composers Concert Series, and serves on the boards of several performance organizations in New England.  He has recently fulfilled commissions from The Chamber Orchestra of Boston, pianist David Holzman, The Firebird Ensemble (for an Apple Hill Center for Chamber Music Residency, with support from a Meet the Composer MetLife Creative Connections Award), and the ANA Trio (Fredonia University; soprano, cello, and piano), among others.  Recent performances by McDonald at the Goethe Institut of Boston, at Tufts, and at many other venues have been highly acclaimed.

Score for Two Flutes, 2 pages; Total, 4 pages.

Trois Duos Concertants Brillants et Faciles pour Deux Flutes, by Eugène Walckiers

Gassett Collection - New Editions by C.A.Vater/Noteworthy Sheet Music, with a Foreword by Peter H. Bloom

2^me Livre de Duos pour 2 Flutes, Opus 11

Duo 1: Flute 1 Part, Flute 2 Part, and Score PDF $10.50

Duo 2: Flute 1 Part, Flute 2 Part, and Score PDF $15.00

Duo 3: Flute 1 Part, Flute 2 Part, and Score PDF $16.50

Eugène Walckiers studied composition at the Paris Conservatoire with Anton Reicha and became a masterful, inventive, and prolific composer and arranger of 19th century chamber music.  Both his original compositions and his arrangements are deeply significant in their expression of a particular, highly developed aesthetic approach.  Walckiers' 2^me Livre de Duos pour 2 Flutes, Opus 11, was dedicated to his friend Théodore Baltazaro and comprises three duets of three movements each.  NSM has re-notated all of the Opus 11 duets using a modern music composition software program.  

A review written by Katherine Borst Jones was published in the September, 2013 issue Flute Talk magazine.  "The publication contains extensive notes and material on the composer.  The second duet is great material for sightreading as well as studying the 19th century style of composition. Printed as flute 1 and flute 2, separately, the copy is clear and easy to read."  Click to read the full review. 

For additional information about the Gassett Collection, please see see our article An Introduction to the Gassett Collection.

Duo 1: Fl 1 & Fl 2 Score, 14 pages; Flute 1 part, 9 pages; Flute 2 part, 9 pages; Total, 37 pages. $10.50
Preview Duo 1

Duo 2: Fl 1 & Fl 2 Score, 20 pages; Flute 1 part, 11 pages; Flute 2 part, 11 pages; Total, 47 pages. $15.00
Preview Duo 2 

Duo 3: Fl 1 & Fl 2 Score, 25 pages; Flute 1 part, 11 pages; Flute 2 part, 11 pages; Total, 54 pages. $16.50
Preview Duo 3

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For those who would prefer to purchase a professionally-printed hard copy of this piece, rather than the PDF download, our print edition of Duo 3 from the 2^nd Book of Duos for Two Flutes, Op.11 by Eugène Walckiers is available directly from NSM for $28.05 plus a $5.95 shipping and handling fee to addresses in the USA.  Please use the Contact Us form to let us know which hard copy publication(s) you would like to purchase, along with your email contact information and USPS mailing address.  We will then send you a PayPal invoice for the sale and, once we receive notice from PayPal that you have paid for the item(s), we will ship your music to the address provided.

Grande Polonaise, Op.21, by Carl Maria von Weber

Anonymous Arrangement for Two Flutes

Gassett Collection - New Edition by C.A.Vater/Noteworthy Sheet Music

Flute 1 Part, Flute 2 Part, and Score, PDF $7.99

Carl Maria von Weber's Grande Polonaise, Op.21 was written originally for piano solo.  The piece was composed in 1808 and first published in 1815.  The Gassett Collection of 19th century flute music contains an edition of this piece arranged anonymously as a duet for two flutes, along with a flute duet version of Weber's Polacca Brillante in E major, Op.72, which we also offer.  We re-notated the flute arrangement of the Grande Polonaise and offer this new edition, which includes a score at no extra charge, as well as the two flute parts.

For additional information about the Gassett Collection, please see see our article An Introduction to the Gassett Collection.

Flute 1 part, 4 pages; Flute 2 part, 4 pages; Fl1/Fl2 Score, 10 pages; Total, 24 pages. 

Duos, by Elizabeth Vercoe

Original Compositions for 2 Flutes, $0.00 (free!)

Elizabeth Vercoe's Duos  for two flutes  are available as free downloads from the composer's own website at http://www.elizabethvercoe.com/.  Dr. Vercoe kindly offered to allow Noteworthy Sheet Music, LLC to make these duets available from our website as well.  The Duos are "fun and quite easy. They are suitable for intermediate students."

Photo of Elizabeth Vercoe courtesy of Caroline Alden.

Just click on the links below to download the Duos at no charge:

Trois Grands Duos Brillants et Mélodiques pour Deux Flûtes Concertantes, by Jules Herman

New Editions by Noteworthy Sheet Music, with a Foreword by P. H. Bloom

Duo 1: Flute 1 Part, Flute 2 Part, and Mini-Score ― PDF $17.98

Duo 2: Flute 1 Part, Flute 2 Part, and Mini-Score ― PDF $21.75

Duo 3: Flute 1 Part, Flute 2 Part, and Mini-Score ― PDF $17.98

Jules Herman's Grands Duos Concertantes (Opus 86) are works of ingenuity, charm, brilliance, grace, and humor.  Long overlooked, they are extraordinarily fine examples of concert-worthy duets of the late 19th century.  Originally published by Choudens in Paris about 1885, the Grand Duos were dedicated to composer François-Auguste Gevaert (1828–1908), then director of the Royal Conservatory of Brussels.  Flutists will find these works challenging and rewarding, teachers of advancing students will be amazed by their utility, and audiences will be enchanted.  (excerpted from PHB's © foreword)

Note that these duets make for excellent sight-reading training ... the music is interesting and demanding, and the parts are nicely balanced.  All three duets have three movements each.  Duo 1: Allegro moderato; Adagio sostenuto; and Rondo allegro.  Duo 2: Moderato; Scherzando; and Polonaise.  Duo 3: Allegretto vivace con brio; Air Varié, Andante; and Boléro, Moderato.

Divertimento No. 2 (Hob. II:22; Op.2, No.5) by Franz Joseph Haydn

Arranged for Flute Quartet by John W. Pratt (originally for string quartet plus 2 horns)

Score and Parts for Flute 1, Flute 2, Alto Flute, and Bass Flute, PDF $10.97

This is the second of Haydn’s two divertimenti, Hob. II:21 and II:22, that John Pratt has arranged for flute quartet, scored for two C-flutes, alto flute, and bass flute.  Both divertimenti were written originally for string quartet plus two horns, but were later adapted by others as quartet-only versions identified as Opus 2, No.3 and No.5.  Please see the text excerpted from Mr. Pratt’s preface to his arrangement of Haydn’s Divertimento No.1 (Op.2, No.3) for additional information that applies to both these works.  There are 5 movements in Op.2, No.5: I-Presto, II-Minuet, III-Largo, IV-Minuet, and V-Finale Presto.  Listen to this computer-generated audio clip from the second movement Minuet to get a sense of how the quartet sounds with flutes in lieu of strings. 

Score, 10 pages; Flute 1 part, 4 pages; Flute 2 part, 4 pages; Alto Flute part, 4 pages; Bass Flute part, 3 pages; Total, 28 pages.

5 Dessert Rounds, by Zenon Slawinski

Contemporary Composition for Two Flutes

Score, PDF $4.99

Excerpts from the preface to the edition by Zenon Slawinski:

In most classic rounds the second voice begins and plays (or sings) the same melody as the first voice. That's the case here too for three of the five Dessert Rounds. Rounds 3 and 4 are different. In Round 3 - The Chocolate Chocolate Chip Cookie - the second voice plays the same melody but a third higher. In Round 4 - Sweet Potato Flan - the second voice plays the melody a 4th higher. // The Dessert Rounds are relatively simple and should not pose any difficulties for most intermediate players, although there are some tricky meter changes in Round 2 - Chocolate Mint Ice Dream - if you practice this slowly you'll soon be able to get past the meter changes and simply enjoy your dessert. // Round 4 - Sweet Potato Flan - is written in 7/4. // I purposely left off many performance markings so the players can make their own mark on the compositions. Interpret these pieces freely and have fun.

Zenon Slawinski, September 12, 2014

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Click to listen to a few audio samples of the Dessert Rounds:

Round 1 

Round 2 

Round 4 

Round 5 

Score for two flutes, 6 pages; Total, 10 pages.