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William Croft - 6 Sonatas for Two Recorders: Alto/Sopranino (PDF)

Discover the pleasure of making music in dialogue. William Croft's 6 Sonatas for Two Recorders invite two players to shape a shared musical conversation through contrasting movements, melodic exchanges and expressive cadences. With no basso continuo or additional accompaniment required, each recorder takes an active role in the harmony and direction of the music.

Edited by Maiko Thomé de Araujo for Sonata Prima, this English-language edition brings the complete six-sonata collection together with practical guidance for rehearsal and interpretation. It offers a way to explore this repertoire while developing attentive listening, coordination and musical independence.

Alto/Sopranino: original keys and F fingering

This edition retains the keys of the historical source and presents both voices in modern notation. It is intended for players using F fingering on alto or sopranino recorders. Two altos preserve the written relationship between the parts; two sopraninos preserve that relationship while the whole duo sounds an octave higher. In a mixed alto-and-sopranino pairing, one voice shifts by an octave, changing the spacing and balance of the music. The book explains these differences so that you can choose your ensemble with a clear understanding of the result.

Music to explore together

The contrast between slower and livelier movements creates opportunities to work on sustained sound, phrase direction, rhythmic clarity and the character of each musical gesture. Exchanging parts during rehearsal helps both players recognize imitations, understand entrances and hear how one line supports or responds to the other. The book proposes starting with short passages, agreeing on breathing points and coordinating the beginnings and endings of notes.

Practical guidance beyond the notes

The introductory material connects the printed score with decisions made in rehearsal. It discusses articulation, tuning, dissonance and resolution, cadences, ornamentation and the choice of tempo. Suggestions include experimenting with different tongue strokes, adding ornaments with sensitivity to the other voice and exploring vibrato or flattement as an expressive colour. These are editorial study proposals to try and adapt, rather than instructions attributed to Croft.

Sonatas III and V explore the upper register. The guidance recommends slow practice, continuous air and stable fingerings before returning to the movement's tempo. This makes the collection especially useful for players who want to deepen their ensemble work and approach demanding passages thoughtfully.

A clear, practical edition

  • All six sonatas, with both voices presented together in two-staff systems.
  • A4 layout with clearly separated systems and page-turn planning for use on a music stand.
  • Editorial notes explaining the source, the adaptation where applicable and the treatment of musical details.
  • Identifiable editorial additions, including accidentals in parentheses and dashed slurs or ties.
  • Suggested metronome values to support rehearsal and informed tempo choices.
  • Guidance for personal printing and preserving the intended page sequence.

For study, teaching and chamber-music practice

Recorder players, teachers and students can use this volume to plan duo sessions, develop listening skills and prepare an interpretation of a complete sonata or selected movements. Explore the six protected sample images in the gallery to assess the notation, layout and musical writing before choosing your edition.

What you receive

One complete English-language PDF eBook, A4, 62 pages including covers. This is a digital publication for download; the images illustrate the edition, and no printed book or audio files are included. The purchase provides an individual, non-commercial licence for the purchaser, including personal printing. Sharing or reselling the file is not permitted. For printing, follow the book's instructions: actual size, double-sided, flipping on the long edge, preserving all pages.