Intermezzo from Sonata for Organ No.4, Op98

Two new publications here, both flute and organ arrangements of pieces originally for solo organ.  Both composers are primarily known for their organ works, but with notable output for the flute too, Rheinberger's Rhapsodie in B Major is a delghtful little piece.  Of course Widor's Toccata from his 5th organ symphony is exceptionally famous, with flautists bieng probably almost as familiar with his Suite for flute and piano.

It's great to see some more pieces from these two composers being made available for flute - the Intermezzo from Rheinberger's Organ Sonata in A minor, Op.98 and a less familiar movement, the Allegro Cantabile, from Widor's Organ Symphony No.5.  It's especially good to have more additions to the repertoire for flute and organ, playing on the similarities in sound between the two instruments.  This similarity can prove to be a challenge in performance and I can see this proving particularly tricky in the Widor arrangement, where the suggested organ stops are predominantly 'flutey' ones; the organ part is busy,  and the flute ends fairly close to it in the same octave.  This could effectively create a sound almost like one instrument, but would depend on the particular accoustic of the venue and careful balancing of dynamics - otherwise the fllute could easily be drowned out.  This is less of an issue with the Rheinberger, where the flute part sits mostly higher above the organ although the flute may need to take all the dynamic markings up a notch to keep this balance.

Overall, both are enjoyable arrangements, having identified beautiful solo lines in the original organ pieces and making the most of the interplay of these with the accompanying parts.  The Rheinberger in particular would make a good introduction to playing with organ accompaniment, with the flute part manageable by a Grade 4-5 standard player.  The Widor is more challenging (around Grade 7-8) with a faster tempo, more complex key signatures and wider range of boh notes and dynamics.