Child’s Play

Child’s Play was written in Boston for Jill Dreeben, who was expecting her first child, Simon, at the time. It attempts, in five contrasting movements, to explore the various shades of innocence evoked by children, and at the same time explores the capabilities of the solo flute. The contrasts, like a child’s attentions, are deliberately capricious but intensely focused. The piece uses all of the staples of the contemporary flute—multiphonics, alternate fingerings, pitch bends, whistle tones, and flutter-tonguing—but still manages to be attractive and accessible to a general audience. Child’s Play was premiered in Boston in the Fall of 1991. The first recording is from Jill’s performance in the fall of 2016. The second is by Lara Deutsch from my 2023 CD Vistas. Listen to both if you have time!