Settembrina: Homage to Jean Sibelius for Flute and Guitar

The title was very appealing and attracted my guitarist and me to learn this duo. There was very little to explain the reasons why this title, Settembrina (September in Italian), was chosen; it would also have been useful to have some information on how this music was an homage to Sibelius (since Sibelilus was born in December). A programme note would certainly have been helpful. The chord structure and progressions didn't resemble Sibelius' compositions that we knew. Images that Settembrina evoke are bouquets of small white flowers, and statues of women in poses of welcome. The piece is dedicated to the Italian duo Giri. This edition is very clear and well presented; it's nice to read. The sudden changes in tempi and tonal centres, which occur in short sections of the piece, meant that we found that it was difficult to understand the linear sense of the music and how we could present it in performance. This is a tricky work for the ears and would take time to learn. The tonal progressions don't indicate a relationship to the music of Sibelius, which was a disappointment. There are two super-high Fs (fourth octave) which don't make sense to me in the context of the music. I suspect that because of these little additions and challenges, the piece hasn't been recorded yet. I would recommend that a duo could learn this and record it for the benefit of some of us who found it too challenging musically.