Mark Hodgkin & Jessica Hodgkin: Duets for Flute & Guitar
Mark Hodgkin

It appears that Folias Duo doesn't quite have the market cornered on flute-and-guitar recordings made by married couples. Those who can't get enough of the fine music flutist Carmen Maret and guitarist Andrew Bergeron issue under that name could do a whole lot worse than this new set from classical guitarist Mark Hodgkin and his flute-playing wife, Jessica. The prosaically titled Duets for Flute & Guitar is Mark's follow-up to his 2020 debut classical release, Preludes, featuring ten self-composed pieces for solo guitar, and is also, one presumes, Jessica's recording debut. That the two would record together seems inevitable, given her background as a flutist and their marital status.

Born in São Paulo, Brazil and since 2011 London-based, Mark first picked up the guitar at the age of thirteen and two years later began formal studies in classical guitar with Henrique Pinto his teacher. Gaining further valuable experience, Mark eventually played solos and guitar duos live with Pinto, delved into studying harmony and orchestration, and gained fluency in composing in a number of different styles. When not crafting material to record, he works as a freelance composer and sound designer for films, television, and documentaries.

Written between late 2019 and early 2022, the compositions on the new release are accessibly tonal, melodically engaging, and harmonically appealing. As a composer, Mark cites Johann Sebastian Bach, Villa-Lobos, Albéniz, and Tárrega as inspirations, and it is possible to detect faint echoes of their music in his writing. At no time does Mark ape or slavishly copy their material, however; each of the ten settings on Duets for Flute & Guitar impresses as a wholly original and personal creation. With their clearly defined structures and melodic motives, they register as expressive songs as much as formal classical pieces and are no less satisfying for doing so, and Mark's playing is unerring throughout. In being granted such melodically rich material to perform, Jessica benefits too and responds with strongly intoned and clearly articulated playing that largely hews to the notes as written and less to improvised soloing. A flute player from a young age, she studied music at the University of Edinburgh and, while she hasn't pursued a professional career as a performer, acquits herself well on the recording. Theirs is a pleasing musical partnership, to say the least.

The listener's immediately captivated by the radiant tone of “The Telegram” and its graceful counterpoint. Perhaps mirroring their personal relationship, Jessica and Mark engage in a conversational to-and-fro that flows harmoniously and seamlessly. An undercurrent of espionage is detectable as “The Conspirators” wends its syncopated way down dark passageways and shadowy alleyways. Consistent with its title, the rhythmically charged “A Jousting Gauntlet” travels at rapid speed with guitar and flute patterns intertwining insistently. The alternation between uptempo and contemplative episodes also shows that Mark's writing is anything but one-dimensional. Here and elsewhere, Jessica' use of vibrato is subtle and thus enhances the performances by not calling undue attention to itself.

Whereas some kind of devilry is clearly afoot in “Dolly's Chair,” the alluring “In a Green Shade” is pastoral, outdoorsy, and even fairy tale-like. “A Solitary Boot,” on the other hand, likewise reflects its title in the sombre loneliness of the music. The delicate intimacy of “Flowers Waiting to be Arranged” is amplified when unison lines by the duo punctuate the performance. Bringing the album to a haunting end, “The Valley of the Shadow” tells a suitably enigmatic tale of intrigue and mystery.

August 2024