Flight from Muspelheim

“Flight From Muspelheim,” written for solo alto flute, depicts a frantic foray into the hellish realm of Norse mythology. In the Norse creation myth the universe forms as a result of a collision between the elemental realm of ice, Niflheim, and the elemental realm of fire, Muspelheim, which meet in a sputtering cloud of steam and water. According to legend, the drops morphed into the first living being, the giant Ymir. To musically depict such a vibrant myth requires an equally dramatic instrument.

The alto flute, a slightly more obscure member of the flute family, was chosen by the composer to portray the fiery realm due to its volatility and eery shrieking quality in its higher register.

Recorded in Fall 2021 by Gary Woodward.