The Piper's Spellbook - Technical Modal Scale Studies

The purpose of this book is to provide the flautist with a comprehensive, alternative collection of scales, which rather than being organised by key signature are instead arranged according to their modal rotations and the general mood, character, quality or by the emotion which they evoke. Although there are advantages to learning the fingering to transpose the major and minor parent scales into any of the 12 standard keys – for example, to suit the range of an accompanying vocalist – in terms of variety, focussing technical work entirely on key transpositions of the major and minor scales can become boring very quickly. Major scales all express a very similar mood or colour which we should know well; a grand, resolved and stable sound. Minor scales on the other hand express a more melancholic and serious tone. But what about all of the other parent scales and modes? By categorising scale collections into Parent Scale and Modal categories and assigning each modal rotation a tangible "mood, colour, feeling, emotion or expressive quality", this book gives the flautist a way to practice scales according to the mood which they wish to evoke by their playing. As music is an objective and universal language, whose mellows can be tangibly felt in the heart and inspired in the mind, then learning to play the flute to evoke a specific feeling or emotion in yourself or others is akin to true spell casting, hence the name of this book.