Music Practice Commons^™

Charles Nicholson – The Forgotten Flutist, Wendell Dobbs

Music Faculty Research

The recent fascination for the flutist-composers of the 19th century has brought to life much music by flute virtuosos such as Tulou, Demersseman, Boehm, Genin, and others. To this time, however, the colorful artistry of Charles Nicholson has been overlooked. His brief career, spanning but two decades, brought the flute to the forefront as a solo instrument in England and propagated numerous fantasies, variation, methods, and other works for flute. Indeed, his contributions as flute virtuoso and flute manufacturer have made an indelible mark on the history and development of the instrument. In the London of the 1820's and 1830's …