This section of the MPRO web site contains many of the compositions and arrangements for recorders that I have produced over the past twenty-seven years, and almost all of this music has been performed in public. It is divided into three categories: arrangements, modern compositions and period compositions. Most of the arrangements were intended for a specific occasion or group and range from those for four-part recorder consort to recorder orchestra settings. All of the four-part selections will also work well when played with more than one instrument per part. The modern compositions consist of three unpublished original pieces in the contemporary idiom. Two others, Entrevista and Serie, have been published by the American Recorder Society and are not included in this collection. My period compositions represent works for combinations and sizes of recorders that I felt as a teacher and director were underrepresented in the surviving repertoire for the instrument from earlier eras.
You are free to use and share all of the music contained here for noncommercial purposes. When you use and share this material please remember that you accept the terms of the licensing agreement that appears in a separate file, viewable HERE. If you wish to use any of the material beyond the scope of this agreement please contact Frederic Palmer by e-mail at fpalmer1419@yahoo.com, telephone, 650-591-3648 or U.S. mail, 1419 Arden Lane, Belmont, CA 94002 U.S.A. I would also appreciate your feedback regarding the music in this collection, including how you use it, if you perform it or comments in general.
The tables below list each musical arrangement and composition by composer and title. The instrumetation is indicated as well, using the abbreviation system described below. Clicking on the Title of the piece will open a folder view, showing you Postscript (.pdf) files containing the parts and scores for the music, and a MIDI (.mid) file which will allow you to hear the piece. Clicking on the Instrumentation description for the piece will play the midi file for that piece, if your web browser supports this.
The abbreviations used for the instrumentation of each selection are based on those found in the reviews appearing in the American Recorder magazine to which I have added some. The following is a key to these abbreviations.Some scores and parts use generic names (Cantus, Altus, etc) for the various voices. In these cases, the instrumentation given after the name of the selection should be consulted. Instead of parts, some selections have short scores for the recorders and other instruments. In these cases, the full score should be consulted for the instrumentation and repeat schemes. Also, repeated sections in the short score may be written as continuous measures in the full score, usually with a change of instrumentation when the material is repeated, and measure numbers in the full score have been adjusted to reflect the numbering in the short score.
I arranged or composed much of this music for the Mid-Peninsula Recorder Orchestra as its director over the past thirty-five years, and to a certain extent that organization is responsible for the existence of many of the selections that I am now sharing with you. If you find this music worthwhile, please consider making a tax-deductible donation to the Mid-Peninsula Recorder Orchestra, a not-for-profit affiliate of the San Francisco Early Music Society and an American Recorder Society Recorder Orchestra. Checks should be made payable to SFEMS (San Francisco Early Music Society) with a note saying Donation for MPRO. Please contact Chantal Moser, Treasurer, Mid-Peninsula Recorder Orchestra, at chantal@moser-sj.com for the address where the check is to be mailed.
I hope you find the music on this web site enjoyable and will add some of it to your recorder repertoire.
Frederic Palmer
Belmont, California
October, 2023
Note, in the tables below:
Click on the composition Title to view and download all the parts and the midi file.
Click on the Instrumentation abbreviation to hear a midi file of the piece (may not work on some browsers).
Arrangements:
Modern Compositions:
Period Compositions:
| Composer | Title | Instrumentation |
| Palmer | Six Sonatas for Two Alto Recorders | AA |
| Palmer | Sonata La Margherita | S/AAB-S/AATB, bc |
| Palmer | Sonata No. 1 from the School of Schmelzer | SATB, org |
| Palmer | Sonata No. 2 from the School of Schmelzer | SATB, org |
This Page Last Modified on July 30,2012 by DFC.