Silence: Exploring Salvatore Sciarrinos style through Lopera per flauto

Abstract

The purpose of this paper is to examine the works in Salvatore Sciarrino’s (b. 1947) collection L’opera per flauto written for solo flute and to examine Sciarrino’s compositional style, focusing on his characteristic markings, creative sonorities, and other pertinent facts about pieces in the collection. The first chapter in this paper discusses the value of silence in music and how Sciarrino provides the illusion of perceived silence. Chapter Two discusses elements of Sciarrino’s compositional style and the presence of complex notation. The final chapter provides flutists with a technical guide to the seven pieces in his L’opera per flauto collection. This document is intended to inform composers and performers about these techniques and Sciarrino’s philosophy behind them. The performer’s guide is intended to assist performers in the execution of various techniques found throughout his pieces, as encountered in the collection. Although unique and intriguing, Sciarrino’s music is rarely considered to be part of today’s standard flute repertoire. Few flutists are aware of his work, and his music is typically performed in small venues by ensembles that specialize in avant-garde music. It is the author’s intention that flutists become more acquainted with L’opera per flauto and Sciarrino’s style so that they may elect to explore and program his works more frequently.

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