The French Flute School vs. The Paris Conservatoire
The French Flute School is a style of playing the flute which blossomed in the Paris Conservatoire under flutist Paul Taffanel. The pre-existing reputation of the conservatoire and the structure of its classes and prizes, formed a basis on which this teacher and his new style could be revealed and accepted. It was the right moment for this new sound. In addition, Taffanel’s influence on the resurgence of beautiful flute music, which had gone out of style, brought out music now lending itself to the appreciation of this new style of playing. Paul Taffanel’s playing, teaching and students are now world renown.
THE FRENCH FLUTE SCHOOL 1860-1950
by Claude Dorgeuille
Translated and Edited by: Edward Blakeman; Tony Bingham, London. 1983. Paperback. Discography by: Christopher Steward
“Throughout the period 1860–1950, the Paris Conservatoire dominated musical education in France. Lessons at the Conservatoire were given in classes (there was no individual tuition) and until 1945 there was only one flute class. The number of students in the class varied from time to time but was generally around twelve. Entry to the class was by competitive audition in October of each year, depending on the number of vacancies available (often only two or three). Following various internal assessments, public examinations (Concours) were held each July. A set piece was prescribed for each jury of internal and external examiners. Chaired by the Director, the jury would award a First or Second Prize or a First or Second Certificate of Merit (Accessit) to each candidate. The word “prize” in this context denoted the result of competition against a required standard, rather than between individual candidates. It was therefore possible for more than one First Prize (Premier Prix) to be awarded in the same year, or, on occasion, for it to be withheld altogether. The acquisition of a First Prize marked a student’s graduation from the Conservatoire and was an almost indispensable qualification for a successful musical career.”
“The beginning of the 19th century heralded a period of artistic decadence for the flute, with virtuoso players favouring a pretentious style, “full of sound and fury”. To this School of playing, which began with Tulou and ended with Demersseman, we owe countless numbers of grand concertos and brilliant solos. As fantasias with variations and pot-pourris of opera melodies were all the fashion, flute music became merely an excuse for idle twitterings and tasteless gimmicks. The credit must go to Taffanel for purifying the solo flute repertoire. Masterpieces long neglected by his predecessors – who showed an incredible lack of taste – were revived and restored to their rightful place. The Bach Sonatas, Mozart Concerti, and in general all the riches of the flute repertoire were virtually unknown until Taffanel brought them to light.”
Taffanel’s sound as described by his contemporaries
“Elegance, flexibility and sensitivity were the hallmarks of Taffanel’s artistry, and his phenomenal virtuosity was made as inconspicuous as possible. He hated affectation, believing that the text of the music should be respected absolutely, and beneath the supple fluency of his playing there was rigorous adherence to accuracy of pulse and rhythm. His tone was captivating and also very full. (La Flute, Encyclopédie de la Musique, ed. Lavignac, Part 2, vol. 3, pp. 1524, 1526)”
Philippe Gaubert’s description of Taffanel’s tone was of a perfectly homogenous tone throughout the range of the instrument, which seems to be a fundamental quality common to the great flutists of the French School. Dorgeuille, Pg. 16
Taffanel’s memorable students
| Philippe Gaubert | Gaston Blanquart | Marcel Moyse |
| Louis Fleury | Georges Lauren | Georges Barrère |
| Pierre Deschamps | Georges Delangle |
Dourgeuille, Pg. 21
[Claude Dorgeuille’s The French Flute School, 1860-1950 is now permanently out of print. I did find one for sale on Amazon in June of 2020. The price was $448.01. There were 3 used ones at $74.99.]
The French Flute School Influence
Flute History the French Flute School
“The pupils of Claude-Paul Taffanel at the Paris Conservatoire had a strong influence on flute-playing in early-20th-century Europe and America where many of them held prominent orchestral and teaching positions and made some of the first recordings of classical repertoire.
This so-called French Flute School used metal flutes of the modified Boehm system by Louis Lot and others, and a playing style that featured a light tone and vibrato. It stood in contrast to the mostly wooden instruments German and English flutists played with a strong and steady sound.”
Spreading Influence
The generation of Taffanel’s pupils was one that resulted in musical performance and education rapidly becoming more common. A corresponding increase in the Conservatoire’s productivity helped extend these pupils’ influence. The graduation rate under the professorships of Louis Dorus and Joseph-Henri Altès had averaged slightly less than one per year. 35 students won first prizes between 1866 and 1899. During the next 40-year period, from 1900 to 1939, the number of first-prize students doubled to 86. This number included an unprecedented five students graduating in the same year—1920. This rate increased still more rapidly in the 1940s, with 48 first prizes awarded to graduates of two flute classes at the Conservatoire.
As the number of graduates increased, so did the opportunities for work. While solo wind recitals remained uncommon, the number of orchestral concerts in Paris between 1906 and the late 1920s doubled to 1880 a year. By 1930, the Conservatoire had become the top of a national pyramid of musical education in France which included 23 branch academies, 21 “national” schools and 20 municipal schools.
Influence Beyond France
For various reasons, the pupils of Taffanel, who spread their teacher’s influence most widely, were teachers who operated primarily in the United States. These students included Georges Barrère, René Le Roy and Marcel Moyse. This may explain why the French Flute School had a such strong influence on flute-playing here in the early 20th century.
Claude-Paul Taffanel (1844-1908)
“When Taffanel became Professor of Flute at the Conservatoire in 1893, he revised the institute’s repertoire and teaching methods, reintroducing works by foreign composers and by those of earlier generations, including Bach. Taffanel’s pupils learned to play in a new, smoother style that included a light and carefully-modulated vibrato.”
Paul Taffanel and the Construction of the French Flute School – A Graduate Thesis
Paul Taffanel – Composer
Taffanel was a fluent composer for the flute and wood wind quintet. He wrote several pieces considered part of standard flute repertoire today. These include:
- Andante Pastoral et Scherzettino
- Grande Fantasie (Mignon)
- Fantasie, Themes/ Der Freischutz
- Quintette in G minor (for woodwind quintet) (1876)[2]
He also began writing a method book for flute, 17 Grands Exercices Journaliers De Mecanisme, which was finished after his death by two of his students, Louis Fleury and Philippe Gaubert. Today, this is considered a standard method book for flute players to study. Philippe Gaubert became the second most recognized French flautist and composer after Taffanel.
Paul Taffanel Listening Examples
The Paul Taffanel Wikipedia Page has some links to Taffanel’s music played by the Soni Ventorum Wind Quintet. This ensemble was in residence at the University of Washington, in Seattle, Washington, during my undergraduate degree time. The flutist, Felix Skowronek (1935-2006), was my teacher during my years there.
There is also an Alex Murry, flute and Martha Goldstein, piano performance of the Andante Pastoral et Scherzettino .
Wikipedia Soni Ventorum Wind Quintet
This is a composer of the month feature:
List of the Paris Conservatoire Professors Over the Years
Paris Conservatoire Professors
See also : The Paris Conservatoire