Elegy for Tu Fu for Bass Flute and Piano

Elegy for Tu Fu is an adagio movement for bass flute and piano that explores some of the many colours and moods that can be drawn from the two instruments. Throughout this piece the pianist plays inside the instrument, taking the notes of the bass flute melody and echoing them, plucking them, strumming them, and playing them on muted strings. In a sense, the piece is a monody for bass flute, because the pianist never plays any notes not stolen from the bass flute melody.

The piece is dedicated to the great Chinese poet Tu Fu from the 8th Century, whose poems still sound modern today. Tu Fu's poems often evoke night scenes as suggested in this music.