Ashley Solomon Interview and Bio

Sarasa in Conversation with Ashley Solomon:

WHAT MADE YOU PURSUE PLAYING THE BAROQUE FLUTE? “I initially studied modern flute and recorder at the Royal Academy of Music (RAM) in London and was always particularly interested in baroque music. After I graduated from my Bachelors degree I attended an early music course in northern Portugal in Casa Mateus and was loaned a baroque flute by the recorder tutor on the course. He organised for us to spend a couple of afternoons in the chapel attached to the Casa playing flute duets. It was inspiring and certainly transformational and within those few days I was completely hooked. I returned to London and started my Masters degree at the RAM on the recorder and baroque flute, giving up the modern flute and haven’t looked back since.”

WHAT DOES A PERIOD FLUTE OFFER THAT A MODERN ONE CANNOT? “Let’s discuss the modern flute first. Apart from being made of metal and having a uniform cylindrical bore, there is the practical issue of all that metal keyword or

"scaffolding" on the modern flute. This not only facilitates playing the instrument in tune, but also enables the player to race up and down the instrument in all keys with an even tone throughout. However, I do find that this even tone is one of the major drawbacks of the modern flute. We all know that the baroque flute is very challenging to play in tune, especially when you stray from the home key of D major.

However, its main strength stems from this challenge, as the player needs to make numerous adjustments and subtle changes to their breath pressure and the shape and angle of their embouchure when playing. This in turn enables the baroque flute to produce an enormous variety of tonal colours in different keys, which was often the reason why baroque composers wrote the way they did for the flute. Composers wanted to explore the rich palette of colours that this instrument can produce, rather than the even and uniformity of sound that modern flute players produce, especially when they play baroque music. “

WE UNDERSTAND YOU ARE IN THE MIDST OF A HUGE RECORDING PROJECT, PERFORMING ON ORIGINAL HISTORICAL FLUTES FROM THE SPOHR COLLECTION. WHICH ONE HAS BEEN YOUR FAVOURITE TO PLAY SO FAR, AND WHY? HOW DIFFERENT DOES IT FEEL TO PLAY AN ORIGINAL FLUTE, AS OPPOSED TO A COPY? “This is a huge topic and one that is very close to my heart at the moment so I will try to be as succinct as possible. I must say that I find it impossible to have a favourite flute in the Spohr Collection as there are close to 650 flutes and I have’t managed to play them all yet! I have played around 80 of them so far and have used 26 of them on the 3 volumes in this CD Series. I hope to use another 3 in March for our next recording and then another 8 or 9 for the following CD in the series. I do however, have some highlights to share with you. The first is the French flute from 1680 made

by Chattillon in boxwood and ivory which is the oldest playable French flute in three pieces in existence. The tone is so sweet and intimate and an absolute pleasure to play. Another boxwood and ivory flute this time by Jacob Denner in Nuremberg in 1720 was also very special but for a different reason. One of the first baroque flutes I purchased as a young professional was a copy of an original flute made by Denner which had just been discovered in an attic in Berlin after the Berlin Wall came down.

At the time this original flute was sold at auction for close to $500,000 and my flute maker had measured it closely and produced this copy for me that I used on my recording of the complete Bach flute sonatas back in 1998. Twenty or so years later the original Denner was purchased by Peter Spohr and I was allowed to use it to record a Bach sonata on the first volume in the Spohr Collection Series. Playing it for the first time was an incredibly emotional experience for me, after playing a copy for so many years.

I must say that each of the 26 flutes I have used for my recordings so far have influenced me in different ways and I feel they have taught me an enormous amount about sound scapes, flexibility in approach to tone and intonation and finger

technique. I feel that I continue to grow as a musician each time I engage with this remarkable collection. Right, I will stop there before I bore you all to death!”

WHAT KINDS OF MATERIALS WERE USED TO MAKE FLUTES IN THE BAROQUE ERA? “I have played 18th century flutes made of solid ivory, porcelain and gold and various woods including boxwood, ebony, grenadilla and plumwood.”

WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE STYLE OF MUSIC TO PERFORM? “That’s easy - French baroque music, oh and Bach of course.”

WHEN YOU’RE NOT BUSY PERFORMING, TEACHING OR TOURING, WHAT IS YOUR FAVOURITE PASTIME? “I have a terribly intelligent border collie dog called Kiki, who is nearly 4 years old, and I do find that when I’m not working I love going on very long walks in the countryside with her.”

GIVEN THE MANY COUNTRIES WHERE YOU HAVE PERFORMED OVER THE YEARS, WHAT IS YOUR MOST MEMORABLE MUSICAL EXPERIENCE TO DATE? “I have been very fortunate in my career to play in some spectacular venues all over the world with my wonderful colleagues in Florilegium. Some of the more memorable performances and musical experiences include performing concertos in the Sydney Opera House, the Theatre Colon in Buenos Aires and the Concertgebouw in Amsterdam.”

THANK YOU!!

Don’t miss the chance to hear Ashley Solomon’s superlative playing in January!

About Ashley Solomon:

Active as a soloist and chamber musician Ashley is the director of Florilegium, and much of his time is spent working and performing with this ensemble that he founded in 1991. They have a busy touring schedule and each year perform at major international festivals and concert series throughout Europe as well as the Americas, Far East and Australia. Florilegium have been recording with Channel Classics since 1993 and have to date made 37 recordings, many of which have garnered international awards. They have given over 1,600 performances over the years.

As a soloist, he has performed worldwide, including concertos in the Sydney Opera House, Esplanade (Singapore), Teatro Colon (Buenos Aires), Concertgebouw (Amsterdam), Konzerthaus (Vienna), Beethoven-Haus (Bonn), Handel-Haus (Halle) and Frick Collection (New York). He also records as a solo artist with Channel Classics and his recording of the complete Bach’s Flute Sonatas was voted the best overall version of these works on either modern or period flute by Gramophone Magazine (February 2017): Solomon’s luminous tone and unfussy command of the complicated melodies conflate into something utterly beautiful. Slow movements are soulful in their infinite variety, fast ones are clever and with a wealth of invention behind them.

Since 2003 Ashley has been training vocalists and instrumentalists in Bolivia, working on the remarkable collection of music held in archives by the Moxos and Chiquitos Indians. He formed Arakaendar Bolivia Choir in 2005 and has directed them in concerts throughout North and South America, Europe and in the Far East and on their 3 cd recordings. In 2008 Ashley was the first European to receive the prestigious Bolivian Hans Roth Prize, given in recognition of the enormous assistance he has given to the Bolivian native Indians, their presence on the international stage and the promotion and preservation of this music.

Combining a successful career across both theory and practice, Ashley Solomon is Head of Historical Performance at the Royal College of Music, having been appointed a professor in

1994. In 2014 he was awarded a Personal Chair and in July 2017 he was elected a Fellow of the Royal Academy of Music (FRAM) which was conferred on him by HRH Duchess of Gloucester. In 2019 he was also elected a Fellow of the Royal College of Music (FRCM) which was conferred on him by HRH Prince of Wales. Both Fellowships are in recognition of outstanding services to music. Since 2014 Ashley has been working closely with the Royal Collection Trust to curate musical performances in their Royal venues including Buckingham Palace (Queen’s Gallery, Ballroom) at Windsor Castle and in the Queen’s Chapel.