Naiades: Fantasy Sonata for flute and harp (1971)

A significant factor in the survival of the pedal harp was Ravel’s Introduction and Allegro, which was commissioned as Erard’s answer to works like Debussy’s Danse sacrée et danse profane written to promote the chromatic harp. In effect a miniature harp concerto, the Introduction and Allegro demonstrates what poetry the pedal harp is capable of and how alluringly it blends with woodwind and strings. The Très lent introduction presents three seductive main themes which the Allegro then adopts, transforms and integrates in an effortlessly fluent sonata-form construction. It proved to be so successful that a whole tradition of harp music - including William Alwyn’s Naiades Sonata for flute and harp, with its beautifully realised water imagery - followed in its wake.