Who is Philippe Gaubert and why is he important for flute?

Answer 1

Philippe Gaubert was a French flutist, conductor, and composer. He was born in Southwest France in 1879. After studying under Jules Taffanel, he entered the Paris Conservatoire where he studied flute, harmony, and composition. In 1907 he participated in the first performance of Maurice Ravel's Introduction and Allegro for harp, flute, clarinet and string quartet. Then in 1908 he collaborated with Lois Fleury in completing a history and method of flute playing which remains a standard text for flutists across the world. Gaubert wrote the piece Fantaisie Pour Flûte et Piano in 1912. After being drafted to serve in World War I, Philippe became a prominent French musician. He became a professor of flute at the Conservatoire de Paris, principal conductor of the Paris Opera, and principal conductor of the Orchestre de la Société des Concerts du Conservatoire from 1919-1938. In 1941 Gaubert died of a stroke. Many of his pieces are standards in the repertoire still to this day (Patmore). Gaubert explored how far he can step out of traditional tonality, chord progressions, and rhythms. 

Fantaisie Pour Flûte et Piano is one of Gaubert’s many compositions for flute and piano. The piece is a fantasy. This is a term that started use in the Renaissance for instrumental compositions and continues presently. Fantasy is a subjective description, where stylistic characteristics of the form vary widely. Improvisatory types of form to strict counterpoint or standard sectional forms are all common. Gaubert’s fantasy fits in a more lyrical and sometimes improvisatory style. His use of ‘fantasy’ is the freedom from having to stick to one style and allowing the soloist to show off the full range and style of the instrument (Field). The fantasy form of the song allowed the composer a freedom from traditional chord progressions and chords which is common from songs in the 20th-century as composers explored further from tonality.