20th century
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Solo repertoire
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Aitken Robert
Aitken, Robert
Amirov, Fikret
Amlin, Martin
Amram, David
Andriessen, Jurriaan
Arnold, Malcolm
Arrieu, Claude
Auric, Georges
Babbit, Milton
Bacchus, Peter
Bacri, Nicolas
Baker, Michael Conway
Baksa, Robert
Barber, Samuel
Barrere, Georges
Bartók, Béla Viktor János
Baton, René-Emmanuel
Beaser, Robert
Bennet, Richard Rodney
Berg, Gunnar
Berio, Luciano
Bernofsky, Lauren
Bernstein, Leonard
Bloch, Ernest
Bolling, Claude
Bon, Maarten
Bonis, Mel
Boughton, Rutland
Boulanger, Marie-Juliette
Boulez, Pierre
Bourdin, Roger
Bournonville, Armand
Bowen, Edwin York
Bozza, Eugène Joseph
Bréville, Pierre
Brings, Allen
Brotons, Salvador
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Brun, Georges
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Büsser, Henri
Camus, Pierre
Carmichael, John
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Casella, Alfredo
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Weigl, Vally
Weinberg, Mieczysław
Wilder, Alec
Williams, Ralph Vaughan
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Yun, Isang
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Berceuse for Flute and Orchestra
Berceuse for Flute and Orchestra
R. Aitken: Berceuse "For Those Who Sleep Before Us" for Flute and Orchestra was written in 1992 on commission by Esprit Orchestra of Toronto and was premiered the same year by Robert Aitken and Canada's only full-time contemporary music ensemble.
Berceuse is one of his most well-known works. It seems to be shaped around the composer's mourning for his father, to whose memory the score is dedicated.
Composed as a Concertante employing a fresh approach to diatonic, combining with special flute effects and clear rhythmic structure. It is in one movement, about seventeen minutes long.
"It begins with the soloist breathing in and out as he plays up and down all the flute¹s natural harmonic tones, setting up a sense of oscillation, which soon is joined by the orchestra in wave-like oscillations in the orchestra. This becomes the rocking of a lullaby. In the middle of the work is a solo cadenza, which leads into a cortege paced by single-beat measures. The flute is silent for some time, but soon after it enters the obsessive beat suddenly ceases, leaving standing alone on a shrieking high note. The lullaby rhythms return in loud waves. As the flute soloist continues, the orchestral texture sometimes recedes, revealing a distant offstage orchestral flutist, often pre-echoing the solo flute part."
Joseph Stevenson
“In writing Berceuse, the intention was to write a binary form piece, very much in the tradition of one of the foundations of the contemporary flute repertoire, the Piece de Concours of the Paris Conservatory.
In Berceuse, I was thinking of the balance between the Chinese Yin and Yang, with the first part expanding outwards through the use of Open harmony and natural harmonics, and the second being very intense and contained through the use of closed positions of chords.
The relentlessness of the rhythm gradually breaks down into what John Cage might call "Korean unison". It is through this disintegration of the ensemble that the flute is finally able to break free into the refuge of the opening uplifting harmonics.”
Robert Aitken
Aitken Robert
Robert Aitken (1939) is a prominent Canadian flutist, composer, and conductor who has been a central figure in contemporary music for over six decades. He is widely recognized for his championing of avant-garde techniques and his role in bridging North American and European musical traditions.
Born in Kentville, Nova Scotia, Canada, began his flute studies in Canada. By age 19, he became the youngest principal flutist in the history of the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra. Seeking to refine his craft at the highest level, Aitken traveled to Europe to study with the 20th century's most legendary flutists, including Marcel Moyse, Jean-Pierre Rampal, André Jaunet, and Severino Gazzelloni.
His approach to music was deeply shaped by his studies in composition with John Weinzweig and electronic music with Myron Schaeffer at the University of Toronto. After serving as principal flute of the Toronto Symphony Orchestra (1965–1970), he left orchestral playing to focus on a global career as a soloist and composer. In 1971, he co-founded New Music Concerts in Toronto, bringing international avant-garde composers (such as Pierre Boulez and Toru Takemitsu) to Canadian audiences.
From 1988 to 2004, he served as a professor at the Staatliche Hochschule für Musik in Freiburg, Germany, influencing a generation of European and international flutists.
Aitken has written numerous compositions based on his experience as a skilled performer. His compositions often explore microtones, multiphonics, and non-traditional sound production. His works are frequently inspired by his travels and world cultures, such as the Japanese-influenced Shadows series. Among his most notable compositions are Concerto for Twelve Solo Instruments and Orchestra, various chamber music compositions, and works for flute.
In 2009, Aitken received the prestigious Walter Carsen Prize for Excellence in the Performing Arts, Canada’s largest arts award.