Meulemans, Arthur

Arthur Meulemans – Andante and Scherzo for four flutes (1945)

(Aarschot, 19 May 1884 – Etterbeek, 29 June 1966)

Arthur Meulemans was an exceptionally productive musician who in addition to his career as a conductor also created a voluminous and diverse oeuvre. He composed solo pieces, chamber music and concertos for just about every orchestra instrument, with his important pieces for flute having been written mostly in the thirties and fifties: Sonata pastorale (1934), Concerto for flute and orchestra (1942), Andante and scherzo for four flutes (1945), Sonata for flute, viola and harp (1949) and Sonata No. 2 for flute and piano (1955).

Meulemans wrote the Andante and scherzo for four flutes for the flute quartet of Francis Stoefs, at the time a teacher at the Conservatoire Royal de Bruxelles and solo flutist in the Omroeporkest (Broadcast Orchestra) in Brussels. Both for him as a soloist, as well as for his flute quartet – which was made up of Louis Boets, Robert Everaert and Alfred Messin – countless pieces were composed. To give an example, two years before Meulemans, Victor Legley wrote his Quartet for four flutes op. 14 for Stoefs and his ensemble.

It’s not clear when the work was created. Stoefs and his colleagues performed the piece during a concert that was broadcast on 24 July 1957 by the Flemish Broadcaster.

Duration of the composition: 8’.

Jan Dewilde (translation: Jasmien Dewilde)

Reprint of a copy belonging to the library of the Royal Conservatoire of Antwerp, which also houses the autograph manuscript. This score was published in collaboration with the Study Centre for Flemish Music (www.svm.be).

Read Flemish preface > HERE