Irish flautist William Dowdall releases a new CD featuring works by Irish composers

Works for Solo Flute is the title of William Dowdall's new CD. The disc 'sets us on a voyage of discovery across the repertoire of the solo flute from the masterpieces of the Baroque to the explorations of our own time.'

Featured on the CD are two new pieces from John BuckleyWinter Echoes and Sea Echoes - and a work from Donnacha Dennehy, fAt. Winter Echoes is a musical reflection on the extraordinary magical qualities of light during an Irish winter, its luminous brilliance and muted twilight. Sea Echoes is a piece dedicated to William Dowdall which incorporates the relatively recent innovation of the sliding head-joint. This adds a range of possibilities unavailable on the conventional flute, the most obvious being the true glissando.

Donnacha Dennehy’s fAt was commissioned by William Dowdall. Composed in 2000 and later revised in 2005, Dowdall plays not only against artificial electronics but also against multi-tracked recordings of himself playing contrapuntal lines (some of which are on bass flute).

William Dowdall is one of Ireland’s leading musicians combining a busy career as a soloist, chamber musician, and teacher. From 1979 to 2004 he was principal flute of the RTÉ National Symphony Orchestra. He was appointed professor of flute at the Royal Irish Academy of Music in 2004.

In addition to his wide-ranging repertoire Dowdall’s interest in contemporary music has led him to develop a workshop based on contemporary solo flute music by Irish composers. This has been presented in Europe to considerable acclaim and has actively promoted Irish composers abroad.

The launch of Works for Solo Flute takes place at the  Royal Irish Academy of Music on Friday, 5 March 2010 at 6:00 pm. The CD is available to purchase from CMC's online shop.