Luna Alcalay
En passant
Flute solo
Duration, c8 minutes
Luna Alcalay
Viennese composer Luna Alcalay continues to enrich the solo instrumental repertory, on this occasion with a short piece for flute in which she exploits, with her customary mastery, the instrument's rich expressive potential. Skilfully judged variations of dynamics, phrasing, attack and tone colour, often in close succession – en passant ("in passing"), as the title suggests – all combine to create an eight-minute journey full of shifting light and atmosphere.
En passant is dedicated to Walter Auer.
The signature recital given by Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra principal flute Walter Auer demonstrated virtuosity and a subtly-inflected singing tone and beguiling personality. Under his fingers, the premiere of Croatian composer Luna Alcalay's En Passant had a compelling intensity, connecting much more deeply than the transient quality jokingly implied in the title.
The Guardian
Descriptive leaflet (pdf)