Theobald Boehm was one of the legendary revolutionaries in the
development of his instrument, the flute. The ‘Boehm System’ was
something of a sea-change in the construction of woodwind instruments but,
perhaps ironically, the phrase ‘Boehm System’ itself seems to
have lingered most in the collective memory because of developments in the
clarinet. Boehm himself had nothing to do with that. Adherents of New
Orleans jazz will know all about whether leading clarinettists gave up the
Albert system in favour of the Boehm, or not. Little of which has much
bearing on the real Boehm breakthrough which concerned complicated key
systems, the use of silver flutes with gold embouchures, and much else
besides. All these qualities were housed in one man, the Munich-born
virtuoso and theoretician who had the genius to create, in succession, a
series of flutes that over the years developed into the modern flute as we
know it.
This recital was recorded way back in November 1995. It traces Boehm
through the developmental-cum-musical staging posts in his creative life.
Thus the 1825
Polonaise de Carafa predates his investigations into
new fingerings and design. It is both ‘brilliant and popular’
exuding extrovert virtuosity every inch of the way. By 1831, the year he
wrote
Variations sur la marche de l’opéra Moïse, he
had begun to realise the necessity for an overhaul of the flute. Though not
a trained instrument-builder his imagination was untrammelled by convention
and the result was remarkable. This is still played therefore on an older
instrument from Boehm’s workshop. It is one perfectly suited to the
Gallic roulades, registral leaps and brocades of great difficulty demanded
of the reigning French virtuoso Louis Tulou. Tulou’s friendship with
Boehm easily survived the Frenchman’s criticism of the latter’s
new designs.
For
Variations brillantes sur un air allemande; Du, du liegst mir
am Herzen Konrad Hünteler plays a conical bore instrument with
ringed keys. There’s an avian, aerial quality to the sound that is
very seductive; a bright top too and a concentrated core sound. By the time
of the 1852
Rondo allegro, the second of the
Souvenir des
Alpes, Boehm’s developments were in widespread use. A new type was
unveiled in 1851, an instrument cannily praised by Berlioz who noted its
sweet crystalline sound but that it was less full than the wooden flute.
Nevertheless he predicted it would sweep aside the older flute within a few
years. Hünteler plays a No.54 silver instrument and it vests the music
with jaunty Alpine freshness - and just a hint of a yodel. Despite the
seismic nature of Boehm’s advances, few original instruments have
survived but one such is used in the recording of the three Schubert song
transcriptions, which Boehm made in 1871. Maybe Boehm should have
constructed a full-scale series of variations on
Ständchen
rather than indulging in ever-more showy decoration. In 1876, when he was 82
years old, he arranged Beethoven’s
Serenade, Op.8 for flute and
piano and it’s duly played here with thoughtful intelligence.
I’ve not yet mentioned Michaela Pühn, who plays a
fortepiano, and is a most sensitive accompanist. Hünteler assumes
centre-stage with considerable dash and technical eloquence. His notes are a
splendid read and I’m indebted to them. Flautists, or flutists, should
find much to interest them in this release.
Jonathan Woolf
