Sonata semplice – David Evan Thomas

Instrumentation: flute and guitar

Duration: 16 minutes

Date Written: 2022

Program Note: 

Sonata semplice was written in 2022 for the Cline/Cuestas Duo (Jenny Cline, flute; Carlos Cuestas, guitar). After writing several guitar works over the years, I decided to get serious about acquiring enough technique to write more effectively for the instrument. I found in David Crittenden, a founder and former member of the Minneapolis Guitar Quartet, a patient and inspiring teacher. We were able to meet remotely on Zoom over several months during the pandemic, and my campfire aspirations quickly took fire, even as my fingers remained stiff.

Jenny Cline has been an enthusiastic supporter of new music for flute, commissioning works from Gary Shocker and Amanda Harburg as well as my Tales of the Sierra Madre for wind quintet. As students at Northwestern University, Jenny and I  played lots of music together, and those memories bring me great joy. It’s a special pleasure to write for such a dear friend. 

As the title implies, Sonata semplice is lyrical and often folk-like––which is not to say it’s easy to play. Another pandemic project involved working through Cecil Sharp’s English Folk Songs, so in the last movement I included “Fanny Blair,” set in the piccolo’s haunting low register. The Latin-American style of that movement nods to Carlos’s Colombian heritage.