Specially composed for his friend, recorder player Caroline Jones, Samuel Howley’s op. 20 sonata has four movements. The first has a strong rhythmic drive and explores textures through a more contemporary idiom. The next movement is a ‘Romance’ in its mood with flowing lines for the recorder and gentle pulsating rhythm in the piano before an emotional climax, after which it ends calmly. In the third movement – inspired by the ‘lone’ trumpet playing of Miles Davis – the very free recorder line conveys a ‘3 a. m. cityscape’ while the piano support is limited to sustained chords. The melody ebbs and flows through sleepy streets as the city falls quiet. The playful Polka that brings the piece to its conclusion is a real test of the recorder player’s virtuosity.
Click HERE to see the first page of the score.
Score: 16pp. Recorder part: 8pp. Both professionally printed and finished by DU Print.