It is impossible to say how many

flute sonata A flute sonata is a sonata usually for flute and piano, though occasionally other accompanying instruments may be used. Flute sonatas in the Baroque period were very often accompanied in the form of basso continuo. List of flute sonatas *George ...

s were composed by

George Frideric Handel George Frideric (or Frederick) Handel (; baptised , ; 23 February 1685 – 14 April 1759) was a German-British Baroque music, Baroque composer well known for his opera#Baroque era, operas, oratorios, anthems, concerto grosso, concerti grossi, ...

, but the correct number is somewhere between none and eight. There are many reasons for the confusion: some of the sonatas were originally written for other instruments, some have uncertain authenticity, some contain borrowings from other Handel works, and some were published (in an altered form) without Handel's knowledge. At least six of the sonatas are known to contain music written by Handel, although he may not have intended some of them to have been played by the flute. The main source of the sonatas is the c. 1730 publication ''Sonates pour un traversiere un violin ou hautbois con basso continuo composées par G. F. Handel'', allegedly by the Amsterdam publisher Jeanne Roger (who had died in December 1722), however the publication was made by the printer John Walsh. In 1732 Walsh published a

revised version The Revised Version (RV) or English Revised Version (ERV) of the Bible is a late 19th-century British revision of the King James Version. It was the first and remains the only officially authorised and recognised revision of the King James Versio ...

under his own name. Three sonatas attributed to Handel were published by Walsh in 1730 as part of a collection titled ''Six Solos, Four for a German Flute and a Bass and two for a Violin with a Thorough Bass''. It was supposed that they were early works composed by Handel before 1703 in

Halle Halle may refer to: Places Germany * Halle (Saale), also called Halle an der Saale, a city in Saxony-Anhalt ** Halle (region), a former administrative region in Saxony-Anhalt ** Bezirk Halle, a former administrative division of East Germany ** Hall ...

but their authenticity is now considered doubtful. The supposition of the date has been proven unfounded, at least for the second sonata, three movements of which are arrangements of music known to have been composed by Handel after 1712. Of the eleven flute sonatas formerly attributed to Handel, only one (the

flute sonata in E minor (HWV 379) The ''Flute sonata in E minor'' ( HWV 379) was composed (circa 1727-28) by George Frideric Handel for flute and basso continuo. The work is also referred to as ''Opus 1 No. 1a'', and was first published in 1879 by Chrysander. Other catalogues of H ...

) appears to have been intended for the flute as it exists in that form in Handel's autograph, and even that one is a hasty arrangement of movements from other works. The

flute sonata in D major (HWV 378) The ''Flute sonata in D major'' ( HWV 378) was composed (?circa 1707) by George Frideric Handel, for flute and basso continuo. The work is also referred to as HHA iv/18,41. The work was originally attributed to 'Sr Weisse' (?Johann Sigismund Wei ...

, which was attributed in a manuscript to Johann Sigismund Weiss (brother of the lutenist

Sylvius Leopold Weiss Sylvius Leopold Weiss (12 October 168716 October 1750) was a German composer and lutenist. Born in Grottkau near Breslau, the son of Johann Jacob Weiss, also a lutenist, he served at courts in Breslau, Rome, and Dresden, where he died. Until ...

), has been proffered as a work by Handel, however no autograph version by Handel is known to exist.

List of flute sonatas

The following are the eight candidates for being flute sonatas by Handel:

References

Citations Sources * * * * Compositions with a spurious or doubtful attribution {{sonata-stub

List of flute sonatas

See also

References