Serene (1978) for flute and soundtracks

Serene: A short serenade, it opens with the call of an owl recorded in the Languedoc in France. The obstinate, rhythmic, flute-like signal of this small nocturnal bird is gradually taken over by the flutist who plays around it. Bruynèl created some of the electronic elements with the aid of a computer and processed the sounds in his own studio.

(from the sleeve notes of the CD Looking Ears 1)

The pastoral Serene is a classic of the modern flute repertoire. The piece opens with the cries of a small owl, recorded in southern France, where the composer loved to listen to the sounds of birds and insects at night. The flute part contains some (extra-musical) directions to aid the performer, e.g. "like a string instrument" (1'15''), or "vocal" (3'30''). Towards the end the flute tries to lure the owl (4'25''), and the owl responds (4'45''). Speaking of magic...

(text by Ernst Vermeulen, from the Music Information Centre Donemus MuziekGroep Nederland)