IT?S BEEN A LONG TIME since one had encountered a concert entirely devoted to flute music.

To be sure, there were other flute events to which one never had the chance to watch.

But last week, along came Canada?s premier flutist Robert Aitken, who collaborated with local flutists in a unique program that showcased the best of flute music and rendered yet in an all-flute orchestra.

For the occasion, the organizer invited Ringo Chan, founder and music director of the Hong Kong Flute Center Orchestra, to conduct. For his orchestra, the 31-member group of the Philippine Flute Society did the honors.

Spotted in the flute orchestra were the country?s finest flutists? Enrique Barcelo, Christopher Oracion, Antonio Maigue, Santiago Yangco, Ray Sison, and Agustina Deyro Alcantara.

The concert was a splendid Philippine-Hong Kong-Canada concert production.

The total range of Aitken as chamber musician came to the fore on the first part as he played C.P.E. Bach?s Hamburger Sonata in G Major; Georges Hue?s Fantasie for Flute and Piano; Franz Doppler?s Andante et Rondo for Two Flutes, with Caitlin Coyiuto; and Prokofiev?s Sonata in D Major for Flute and Piano, Op. 94.

The rapport of Aitken and the young Coyiuto in the Doppler piece was the perfect combination of infinite musical wisdom and youthful dynamism.

The Bach and Hue openers gave local audiences a superb taste of Aitken?s musicality, and his ability to work with a co-flutist was grandly demonstrated in the Doppler number.

Excellent notice

In the first part, one also got an excellent notice of pianist Cristine Coyiuto as chamber musician, especially in the complex but equally intoxicating Prokofiev sonata. Here, one finally got a total education of the full nuances of the flute as an equal partner of the piano.

Phrase for phrase, Coyiuto matched Aitken?s sensitivity and power, and even managed to show how both a flute and piano could make a mind-boggling sonata come to life such as it was.

When the flute orchestra opened with Brandenburg?s Concerto No. 3 (arranged by John Davis), one got an inkling of how the evening would turn out.

When Aitken appeared as soloist of Mozart?s Andante for Flute and Orchestra and Doppler?s Fantasie Pastoral Hongroise, he shook the hand of the flute ?concertmaster,? which elicited mild amusement from an audience not used to an all-flute orchestra.

There was no question Aitken shone as soloist and the orchestra proved it could promote the flute in a grand manner. Chan lived up to his specialty as flute conductor, and even managed to acknowledge the ?mastermind? of the unique flute production who was no other than James Coyiuto, husband of Cristine and father of Caitlin Coyiuto.

Unbeatable

This concert had many things going for it. It had an unbeatable soloist; the program was conceived with such good taste; and the musical collaboration with Canada and Hong Kong obviously went very well. It had a well-printed program with all the flute inputs you need.

Spearheaded by the Philippine Flute Society, the BDO and the Clarion Chamber Ensemble, the concert would likely run away with the honor as the flute event of the year.

On another note, the ROS Music Center is now making its presence felt on the music scene by allowing use of its Bosendofer Piano Model 225 for this concert.

For a population of over 90 million, it?s a big surprise that good pianists can only rely on less than 10 good pianos in the entire country (now, don?t be surprised why Licad brings her own piano to as far as Laoag, Tuguegarao and Legazpi City for outreach concerts).

Three are privately owned; one was bought by GMA to the tune of P5 million and given to the UP College of Music. The rest of the good pianos Placido Domingo and Andre Previn have personally endorsed are at the ROS Music Center.

Call 09175296642.

Feast of chamber music

A special concert on Nov. 30, 8 p.m. at the Philamlife Theater will feature tenor Randy Gilongo, pianist Najib Ismail, cellist Renato Lucas and violinist Gina Medina.

The program includes Schumann?s ?Dichterliebe? (Poet Love); Schubert-Liszt?s ?The Erl King? (Erlkonig); Gluck-Sgelmeti?s ?Dance of the Blessed Spirit?; Wagner-Liszt?s ?Liebestod? from Wagner?s ?Tristan und Isolde?; and the grand finale, Mozart?s Piano Quartet in G KV. 478.

Call 5395915.