An uplifting arrangement for flute and piano of the Giga from Corelli’s Opus 5 Violin Sonata No.9. In 12/8 time the piece does need to be played with energy and a suggested tempo of 104 dotted quarter notes (crotchet) beats to the minute is suggested and has been used in the realisation. Repeats are indicated in the score but have not been used in the playback score. Accompaniments are in place featuring the piano giving an opportunity to flautists to practice in an ensemble context. They playback at 96, 100, 104, 108 & 112 bpm. (dotted quarter note (crotchet) beats to the minute) Score detail has been omitted in the sheet music score which is a feature of most baroque music scores. Playing the A major scale and arpeggio would be good preparation for playing this score. The arrangement very much keeps to the composer’s intention in terms of the melodic and bass writing. There are some beautiful shapes to play and there is a considerable amount of simply wonderful sequential writing. Ornaments have been written out simply to add clarity to the score. The piano accompaniment combines chords and figuration with the bass line The chords generally change every beat of the bar - describing what is referred to as the harmonic rhythm and this is a fairly consistent in the movement Composers in Corelli's time provided a melody and bass line with what was termed a figured bass notated below the bass clef. The figured bass was a series of small numbers and accidental signs which indicated to the keyboard player usually a harpsichordist in sonata da camera (chamber sonata) the chords that were needed to accompany the written out melody and bass. This part was referred to as the continuo. What the music editor particularly likes about this movement is its contemporary appeal and its suitability to be played by many different combinations of instruments. As a performance piece it has clear intention, communication and ap[peal. Corelli 1653 – 1713 was a Rome based composer and violinist identified with the middle baroque period in music history. Corelli did not publish a great amount of music but he was meticulous in his compositional approach. The twelve violin sonatas in the Opus 5 collection were published in 1700.
