Emmanuel Pahud & Eric Le Sage

Was it the girl next door practising her first steps on the transverse flute that put you off it? We, too, have to admit that it never crossed our minds that the instrument could be so entrancing. Not, that is, until we heard Emmanuel Pahud. This Franco-Swiss flautist is phenomenal and the story of his life reads like a fairytale. At the age of four, he heard the boy next door playing Mozart's First Flute Concerto. Wanting to be able to do the same, he immediately began lessons. Just ten years later, he was winning one competition after another. His dream was realized when he was invited to be the soloist in that selfsame concerto. And the fairytale continued. At the age of twenty-two he was appointed first flautist with the Berlin Philharmonic by Claudio Abbado, a position he still holds. We have at last been able to net Pahud for a recital, so be prepared to change your opinion about the instrument. He adapts himself chameleon-like to the score, displaying an unending variety of sound colour, articulation and phrasing. And always with an unparalleled natural elegance. Together with kindred spirit Eric Le Sage, you will hear him in some of the finest pieces written for the flute. A concert guaranteed to make not just flautists happy.