Last Flight of Saint-Ex for various chamber ensembles

The Last Flight of Saint-Ex for Sax Quartet/Sax Orch./Oboe + strings

Last Flight of Saint-Ex for Sax Quartet c. 6:30 min.

Published by the Australian Music Centre – Digital download or postage:
https://www.australianmusiccentre.com.au/workversion/beaugeais-katia-last-flight-of-saint-ex/34830

NEW Last Flight of Saint-Ex for Saxophone Orchestra c. 12 min.
Premiered at the 2018 World Sax Congress in Croatia.
Recomposed and transformed into a new work of its own: new passages and more slap-tongue to create a whole new saxophone orchestra sound!
2 Sax orchestra versions available with 2 Baritones + 1 Bass OR with 3 Baritones:
https://www.australianmusiccentre.com.au/product/last-flight-of-saint-ex-for-saxophone-orchestra-including-2-baritone-and-1-bass-saxophone

Concert Program Note

Last Flight of Saint-Ex was originally composed in 2008 for oboe and string quartet for a performance by the Sydney Symphony Orchestra Fellowship players. This recomposed version for saxophone quartet has been transformed into a new work of its own, showcasing the virtuosic tonal possibilities that the saxophone ensemble can create. Last Flight of Saint-Ex is also available for saxophone orchestra and was commissioned for a premiere performance at the 2018 World Saxophone Congress in Croatia.

Last Flight of Saint-Ex (2010/2019) is inspired by the famous French writer and pilot Antoine de Saint-Exupéry (1900-1944), also known as Saint-Ex – author of the international bestseller Le Petit Prince – whose plane was likely shot down by a young German pilot in 1944 in the South of France. In 2004, the wreckage of a plane was pulled from the Mediterranean near the southern France city of Marseille and identified as Saint-Exupéry’s. Though evidence indicates that he had likely been shot down, the true cause of his death still remains a mystery.

A fast, pulsating, rhythmic style governs this work. A feeling of urgency and unrest is created by complex syncopated rhythms, irregular metres and erratic dynamic changes, exploring the technical capabilities of the four saxophonists. In the slow middle section, a feeling of sadness, pathos and grief is conveyed by a haunting baritone saxophone solo. Slap-tongue motivic figures alongside thick rippling trill and chordal textural sound mass effects build to a loud and dramatic climax.

This piece includes contemporary playing techniques. However, if the saxophonists cannot slap-tongue or flutter-tongue the players can perform without the extended techniques.

Available for: