The Quantz Sonatas are here!

A year-and-a-half after I first heard about Rachel Brown's Urtext* edition of Quantz flute sonatas, they arrived in today's mail.

As a member of the National Flute Association, I've known about Rachel Brown for a number of years, but I did not have the opportunity to see her perform until the 2009 NFA Convention. She presented a lecture/recital of sonatas written by Johann Joachim Quantz for Frederick the Great of Prussia.  During the lecture portions of the program Rachel spoke about the court of Frederick the Great and some of the history and gossip of the period. She talked about visiting the collection and seeing the original manuscripts of the sonatas. She also announced that she planned to publish an edition of the sonatas with facsimiles of the originals. The first run, she told us, would be by subscription.

Later during the convention I had the pleasure of meeting Rachel and spending a few minutes with her. We talked a bit about playing the flute (of course), history, and her plans to publish the sonatas.  I gave her my email address and expressed an interest in subscribing.

A year later, I received an email from Rachel informing me that the sonatas were ready for publication and inviting me to subscribe.  I'd been uneasy about subscribing because of what it might cost.  On the other hand, how often do I have the chance to be a patron of the arts?  As it turned out, the subscription less than $100, which I could afford at the time, so I was pleased to be able to play a small part in getting the sonatas published. 

They were due to be released on November 19 in conjunction with a launch concert at the Royal College of Music in London.  You can read a review of the concert here at the Chamber Music Today blog. However, there was a delay at the printer with the folders, and they mailed the music to subscribers in December.  Mine was postmarked December 11, and even via air mail, it took over a month to arrive.  Perhaps the winter storms played a role. 

But now both volumes are here.  Each volume contains six sonatas with three scores (two containing both the flute and cello parts printed together and one for keyboard) and the facsimiles.  Rachel has written fairly extensive performance notes that are readable, interesting, and usable.  They include sections on accidentals, rhythmic alteration, tempo markings, articulation, grace notes and trills, ornamentation and cadenzas.  In the near future she will have an extended performance guide online at her web site.  The keyboard realization of the figured bass is by Terence Charlston.

I particularly appreciate that Rachel chose to print the flute and cello parts together in the same score.  In the performance notes she writes:

The flute and figured bass parts are presented together, as Quantz demanded.  Apart from the obvious advantage of better ensemble through following each other's parts, this offers many other benefits, chiefly, that it allows for a better understanding of the harmony and all of its implications.

I've never understood why most editors and publishers print the flute and keyboard parts together in the keyboard score but print the flute part alone. I'd much rather see the other musicians' parts while I'm playing. Besides, it makes it easier to find your place, if you get lost. And I have lost my place during performance. That's why I usually play from the keyboard score, even if I have to enlarge it!

I haven't yet read through these with my flute, but that gives me something to look forward to as I savor the scores and text.

*Urtext: n. The original text, as of a musical score or literary work. [Ger: ur-, original] (from The American Heritage College Dictionary, Fourth Edition, 2002)