21st century
Baroque
Classical
Romantic
20th century
21st century
Solo repertoire
Piccolo
Alto flute
Bass flute
Kernis Aaron Jay
Adler, Samuel
Albert, Adrienne
Amlin, Martin
Arnauts, Dimitri
Bacri, Nicolas
Baksa, Robert
Balter, Marcos
Beal, Jeff
Bilotta, John
Borisova-Ollas, Victoria
Bullard, Janice Maille
Bunch, Kenji
Carter, Elliott
Chamberlain, Nicole
Chyrzynski, Marcel
Clarke, Ian
Coleman, Valerie
Connesson, Guillaume
Costa Roldán, Eduardo
Cueto, Daniel
Dalbavie, Marc-André
Daugherty, Michael
Dehnhard, Tilmann
Desenne, Paul
Dorff, Daniel
Egger, Fabian Johannes
Eggert, Kenneth
Firšt, Nenad
Furrer, Beat
Garrop, Stacy
Ghidoni, Armando
Gibb, Charles
Hailstork, Adolphus
Harberg, Amanda
Hersh, Howard
Hoover, Katherine
Igudesman, Aleksey
Ittzés, Gergely
Kernis, Aaron Jay
Khoury, Houstaf
Kukal, Ondřej
León, Tania
Lias, Stephen
Liebermann, Lowell
Lindberg, Christian
Linthicum-Blackhorse, William
Louke, Phyllis Avidan
Magalif, Eugene
Mitchell, Jonathan
Monroe, Ervin
Mower, Mike
Mucha, Geraldine
Mulleman, Tim
Ornstein, Maarten
Pann, Carter
Panufnik, Roxanna
Pärt, Arvo
Pattillo, Greg
Penman, Katrina
Petrič, Ivo
Price, William
Pritsker, Gene
Pucihar, Blaž
Ran, Shulamit
Rea, Stephanie
Rotaru, Doina
Rozman, Anže
Schocker, Gary
Schwantner, Joseph
Sciarrino, Salvatore
Seif, Sami
Serebrier, José
Skipworth, Lachlan
Sollberger, Harvey
Somma, Victor
Uébayashi, Yuko
Vasks, Pēteris
Widmann, Jörg
Witt, Carl
Woolf, Randall
Yi, Chen
Flute Concerto
Flute Concerto
Aaron Jay Kernis: Flute Concerto was written in 2015.
The work was jointly commissioned by several organizations for the flutist Marina Piccinini, including the Detroit Symphony Orchestra, the Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra, the Chautauqua Institution, and the Peabody Conservatory of Music.
The concerto is dedicated to Marina Piccinini "with warmth and admiration."
The world premiere was given by Marina Piccinini and the Detroit Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Leonard Slatkin, on January 21, 2016, in Detroit.
The four-movement work explores contrasting moods, moving between darker and lighter elements, and incorporates various dance forms. Kernis described the movements as being in two halves: a darker half (I. Portrait and III. Pavan) and a lighter half (II. Pastorale-Barcarolle and IV. Taran-Tulla). The finale includes a nod to the rock band Jethro Tull, influenced by the band's flutist-leader Ian Anderson.
Leonard Slatkin (conductor), Peabody Symphony Orchestra, 2019, Naxos
1. Portrait
Leonard Slatkin (conductor), Peabody Symphony Orchestra, 2019, Naxos
2. Pastorale-Barcarolle
Leonard Slatkin (conductor), Peabody Symphony Orchestra, 2019, Naxos
4. Taran-Tulla
Kernis Aaron Jay
Aaron Jay Kernis (1960) is a celebrated American composer and educator, recognized for his eclectic and expressive musical style that blends post-Romanticism with minimalism and various contemporary influences. He is a winner of both the Pulitzer Prize and multiple Grammy Awards.
Born in Philadelphia, Kernis began his musical journey on the violin and piano, teaching himself composition at age 13. He studied at the San Francisco Conservatory with John Adams, the Manhattan School of Music with Charles Wuorinen, and Yale University with Jacob Druckman and Bernard Rands.
Kernis achieved national acclaim at just 23 when his first orchestral work, Dream of the Morning Sky, was premiered by the New York Philharmonic in 1983. He has held numerous prominent positions, including Music Advisor to the Minnesota Orchestra for 15 years, and has been teaching composition at the prestigious Yale School of Music since 2003.
Kernis's music is known for its passionate expression, dynamism, and broad emotional range. He is comfortable blending a wide array of styles, from rock and salsa to Mahler-influenced lyricism and jazz, often grounding his compositions in a visual image or concrete idea.