Nick Fletcher
Les Productions D’Oz: 4 pages
Nick Fletcher’s guitar pieces are always interesting, slightly off – beat, but nicely so, and the harmonies and melodies memorable, and yet just a little different from other people’s writing.
This latest piece is no exception. It flows in semi – quavers, with the odd demi – semi quavers and using a mixture of time signatures that feel utterly natural, and not forced. Marked Moderato Cantabile in E Major it has a kind of motto theme that recurs several times but with a different ending .Then the main section that is constantly on the move takes over, with some clever moments that feel very natural under the fingers, once you find them! After a repeat, a new idea emerges mixing 2/4, 5/16, 4/4, 5/8 and 3 / 4, but still feeling natural in its rhythmic progression. After the motto theme returns, each time with a slightly different ending again, one has a D.S. instruction to go to the coda, when the sign to do so appears. However, although I think it is obvious where the sign should be, to jump to the coda, the sign is absent, but I think it should be after bar 19! The short coda then closes on a suspended 4th E chord, pulling the A off to G #.
This quite short piece is not too difficult, and intermediate players should find it accessible, and nice to get under your fingers, with a lovely end result. Definitely this piece is worth getting a look at!
Chris Dumigan