The Art of Imagination Queens Duo

• Bruno Hilse (b. 1941): Suite for Flute & Harp, Op. 6: I.
• 1Suite for Flute & Harp, Op. 6: I. Andante04:04
• 2Suite for Flute & Harp, Op. 6: II. Bacchanale03:06
• 3Suite for Flute & Harp, Op. 6: III. Adagio05:53
• 4Suite for Flute & Harp, Op. 6: IV. Scherzo03:11
• Arnold Bax (1883 - 1953): Sonata for Flute & Harp:
• 5Sonata for Flute & Harp: I. Allegro moderato06:35
• 6Sonata for Flute & Harp: II. Lento07:20
• 7Sonata for Flute & Harp: III. Moderato giocoso04:40
• Antonio Zamara (1829 - 1901), Franz Doppler (1821 - 1883):
• 8Casilda fantaisie12:00
• Andy Scott (b. 1966): Sonata for Flute & Harp:
• 9Sonata for Flute & Harp: I. Freely, with Energy05:20
• 10Sonata for Flute & Harp: II. Rubato04:34
• 11Sonata for Flute & Harp: III. With Purpose & Energy!04:38
• Total Runtime01:01:21

Info for The Art of Imagination

Fantasy is the creative ability of man making the creation of inner images and thus of an “inner world” possible. It is the human senses that stimulate our fantasy, and hearing is one of the first senses that develop in the womb. Hearing and listening does not only mean understanding consecutive words and their meaning, but moreover grasping the emotions of what is being said as expressed through the articulation and the intonation. The same thing happens when we listen to music.

Since its beginnings, music has often been closely connected to dance, theatre and poetry, and makes it possible to “paint” reality outside of music, i.e. nature or human emotions. The fact that these are not real pictures from the area of art, but images that originate solely in our fantasy and our sub- conscious even increases the stimulation of our imaginative and emotional lives. The reason for this is that the listener’s fantasy is not bound but rather only stimulated in a certain way and is able to unfold freely.

The programme of this CD is a compilation of select compositions for flute and harp from the English and German-speaking worlds, the composers of which deliberately explored the pictorial nature of music. Every single one of them has his own musical imagery, corresponding to his temporal context and his life’s story. This album presents a colourful bouquet of emotions with works that were consciously or unconsciously inspired by poetry, theatre and the opera.

Queens Duo:
Verena Beatrix Schulte, flute
Hanna Rabe, harp

Queens Duo
Chamber music provides a very intimate insight into music making. It makes every nuance count, opens one's ears and invites the audience directly to experience the music in the same way the musician on stage does. The rising interest in chamber music concerts makes room for ensembles like the Queens Duo, a young and dynamic ensemble, which explores new sound fields in the compositions for flute and harp.

Performing a wide range of repertoire the duo developed a great interest in discovering new works and playing compositions outside the mainstream repertoire. Harpist Hanna Rabe and flutist Verena Beatrix Schulte founded their duo in 2010 while both musicians were living in London. To this day, the duo therefore identifies itself strongly with the British capital, a city that combines young and dynamic creativity with discipline and tradition. They were invited for duo performances and as soloists in double concerts for flute and harp with diverse orchestras to several festivals in Germany and France.

Furthermore the Queens Duo is prize winner of national and international awards, such as the "Artists of the year 2014" from Kulturstiftung Marienmünster, the "Young Art 2014" from Volksbank Paderborn-Höxter-Detmold and achieved the second prize in the International Chamber Music Competition "Citta' di Chieri" in Italy. Since 2014 they collaborate with the German radio company WDR 3, who featured them in a concert which was broadcasted live on German radio. In 2015 they released their debut CD with works by British and German composers in cooperation with the German label TYXart.

Booklet for The Art of Imagination