El Pífano

Mario Lavista: El Pífano for piccolo was written in 1989. The piece is dedicated to Marielena Arizpe, continuing Lavista's decade-long creative partnership with her. Marielena Arizpe premiered it in 1989 in Mexico City.
1989 was a year of "mythological" and "historical" reflection for Lavista, characterized by a fascination with ancient sounds. Lavista was deeply involved in researching the sonic landscapes of pre-colonial Mexico. El Pífano refers to the small, high-pitched flutes used in colonial and military processions, but Lavista strips away the military context. He reimagines the piccolo as a "primitive" bone flute, evoking a sense of ancient ritual.
This year coincided with his work on larger ensemble pieces, such as Hacia el Comienzo. His solo works from the late 80s, like El Pífano, served as "laboratory" studies for these larger textures. He was moving away from the purely technical "multiphonic" studies of the 70s toward a more evocative, storytelling style.
By 1989, Lavista had written for the C flute, alto flute, and bass flute. The piccolo was the "final frontier" in his exploration of the flute family's range. He wanted to prove that the piccolo could be played with delicacy and warmth (piano and pianissimo) rather than just as a piercing orchestral color.
Executing multiphonics on the piccolo is notoriously difficult due to its small bore. Lavista uses specific, fragile fingerings to produce "ghostly" double-tones that sound more like whistling wind than traditional chords. The piece utilizes "whistle tones" (thin, high harmonics) to create an atmosphere of solitude. The pitch is often unstable, mimicking the natural imperfections of a wooden fife.