Shahid Osuna

16 September 2018

Music 306

Professor Robaire

Mann Flips the Flute: Herbie’s Instrumental Role in Changing the Perception of the Flute

Folk music was always used flute in music for the people. However, for centuries, the

flute has also been seen and used as an instrument for the upper-echelon of society. The

ryuteki, a Japanese transverse flute, was played in Gagaku Imperial court. Recorders (and later

traversos) were used in compositions for royalty in Western Europe. In other parts of the world,

it is an instrument of religion and ceremony, such as variants of the Native American flute, or the

South Asian bansuri. However, more recently in history, the western concert flute is used in

classical music and is an integral part of chamber and symphonic works by virtually every

composer, unknown to most as an instrument that could be otherwise. ​It was not until Herbert

Jay Solomon, more popularly known as Herbie Mann, took his passion for world music,

jazz, and flute, and created a revolution in the history of the instrument- reinventing the

flute repertoire and igniting the jazz flute movement.

I’ve decided to research Herbie Mann and his impact on the flute because as a classical

flutist with some experience in jazz and a love for ethnomusicology, Herbie has always stood

out to me as an huge inspiration and role model. In high school, some of the first LP’s I had

bought were jazz flute records, including Hubert Laws’ ​The San Francisco Concert ​and Herbie’s

Standing Ovation at Newport. ​In my school’s jazz band, I played mostly flute, though sometimes

doubling on soprano sax and clarinet. It was from these early sparks of excitement in listening to

these jazz greats that enthralled me. In college, I found a love for the midpoint of anthropology

and musicology, and found a great deal of interest in the music of my own latin origins. Through
this paper, I hope to delve into Herbie’s history and impact, as well as reflect on the work I have

done in my undergraduate and the work I will do in the future as a part of a larger contextual

timeline, contributing to the legacy left behind by Herbie Mann.

[CONCLUSION DRAFT] Today, even repertoire for classical flutists includes concert

pieces with jazz-incorporated elements, such as the Claude Bolling suites, Astor Piazzolla’s

Libertango,​ and the more contemporary ​Charanga​ by Michael Colquhoun. In the world of flute, a

new movement of flute choirs set as “flute big bands” are coming into popularity, as flutists such

as Ali Ryerson inspire and encourage classical flutists to improvise and learn a genre which

many would have not otherwise thought to try. Universities such as San Diego State University

are offering new undergraduate degrees in Jazz Flute.