The Library of Congress announces the commissioned world premiere of a new Sonata for Solo Flute by composer Lowell Liebermann, to be performed on September 12, 2026, in celebration of legendary flutist Sir James Galway.
The Sonata for Solo Flute will receive its world premiere performance by principal flutist of the Boston Symphony Orchestra, Lorna McGhee, followed by a moderated panel discussion featuring Lady Jeanne Galway, Lowell Liebermann, Lorna McGhee, and Carol Lynn Ward Bamford, Curator of Musical Instruments at the Library of Congress.
“I am honored to be a part of this celebration of such a musical icon,” said composer Lowell Liebermann, “Getting to know and work with both Sir James and Lady Galway over these many years has been one of the most important parts of my life and career, and I am proud to consider both of them very dear friends, mentors, and colleagues. I look forward to celebrating them both during this event and through the life of this new Sonata.”
The Dayton C. Miller Collection at the Library of Congress is the world’s largest and most extensive collection of flutes. Curator Carol Lynn Ward Bamford has long believed that an institution with such a Collection should honor the world-renowned Sir James, one of the foremost figures in classical flute.
“The Library of Congress is grateful for this opportunity to recognize Sir James Galway’s prolific impact on the world of music along with his longtime collaborator Lowell Liebermann,” said Nicholas Brown-Cáceres, chief of the Music Division. “This new commission continues the Library’s track record of supporting important living composers and contributing to the expansion of the repertoire, made all the more meaningful as a tribute to Sir James.”
Following the event, Sir James Galway will further the Collection’s legacy through the donation of a portion of his personal archives, including his own working copies of Liebermann’s first Concerto for Flute and Orchestra.
One of the most frequently performed and recorded American composers, Lowell Liebermann has had a long friendship with Sir James and Lady Jeanne Galway. Since first working together on his first Concerto for Flute and Orchestra, which Galway commissioned and premiered with the St. Louis Symphony in 1987, Galway commissioned Liebermann for a Concerto for Flute, Harp and Orchestra, and Trio No. 1 for Flute, Cello, and Piano. In 1998, Galway recorded three of Liebermann’s concertos for RCA Red Seal with Liebermann conducting the London Mozart Players.
This new commission for a Sonata for Solo Flute from the Library of Congress is a significant addition to the flute repertoire, and the first solo sonata from Liebermann. It follows his 1987 Sonata for Flute and Piano, Op. 23, which has become one of the most frequently performed American works in the flute repertoire.
Event Details
Saturday, September 12, 2026, 7 PM
Coolidge Auditorium in the Thomas Jefferson Building
Library of Congress
Tickets available August 12, 2026
Attendance is free, seating is limited
Sir James Galway
A living legend of the flute, Sir James Galway is regarded as the supreme interpreter of the classical flute repertoire. Through his extensive touring and over 30 million albums sold, Sir James has endeared himself to millions worldwide since launching his solo career in 1975.
Born in Belfast, Sir James studied in London & Paris before embarking on his prestigious orchestral career with Sadlers Wells & Royal Covent Garden, The BBC, Royal Philharmonic & London Symphony Orchestras, and as solo flutist with the Berlin Philharmonic under Herbert von Karajan. He has since performed with the world’s leading orchestras and most prestigious conductors, and shared the stage with an amazing array of entertainers.
Alongside his busy performing schedule he prepares the next generation of flutists through the educational programmes at his Galway Flute Academy. www.galwayfluteacademy.com
He has performed for numerous dignitaries in his career, including Queen Elizabeth II, Pope John Paul II, Presidents Clinton & Bush Snr & Jnr; HRH King Charles III, HRH The Princess Royal, The Empress of Japan, Princess Diana & President Peres.
A fervent champion of new music, Sir James has most recently receieved a new Sonata for Solo Flute commissioned in his honor by The Library of Congress from composer Lowell Liebermann.
Sir James is also a published author, having published articles, flute studies and books. He is currently engaged in a publishing collaboration with Southern Music.
Sir James devotes much of his free time supporting charitable organizations such as Help Musicians UK, SOS, CLIC Sargent, Future Talent, Youth Music (UK) and UNICEF.
Among the many honours and awards for his musical achievements are: the Recording Academy’s President’s Merit Award; Classic Brits & Gramophone Lifetime Achievement Award; induction into the Hollywood Bowl Hall of Fame and the Kennedy Centre Gold Medal in the Arts; Honorary Doctorate of Music at the University of Miami; Washington Performing Arts – Ambassador of the Arts recipient; University of Ulster, Northern Ireland and many more.
Sir James received an OBE in 1979 & Knighthood in 2001 from HRH Queen Elizabeth II.
Lowell Liebermann
American composer Lowell Liebermann is one of the most frequently performed and recorded composers of our time. Heralded by Time Magazine as “radiantly visionary… a composer unafraid of grand gestures and openhearted lyricism”, his music continues to defy boundaries while taking its place in the standard repertoire of today’s great soloists, ensembles, and orchestras worldwide.
“Consistently engaging, colorful, tuneful… [and] clearly modern” (ClassicsToday), Liebermann’s over one hundred fifty works have seen premieres by major orchestras, including the New York Philharmonic, Chicago Symphony, Dallas Symphony, and National Symphony; ballet companies, including the Royal Ballet and San Francisco Ballet; chamber ensembles, including the the Emerson, Dover, Orion, Shanghai, and Ying Quartets; and internationally acclaimed soloists, including Sir James Galway, Yuja Wang, Sir Stephen Hough, Garrick Ohlsson, and more.
Mr. Liebermann’s works have been recorded over one hundred and sixty times, and his Sonata for Flute and Piano, Op. 23 and Gargoyles, Op. 29—among his most performed works—each appear on more than twenty-five recordings. His Frankenstein, Ballet in Three Acts, Op. 130 has been released on DVD and Blu-ray by The Royal Ballet.
Mr. Liebermann is also active as a pianist, having made his debut at Carnegie Recital Hall at the age of sixteen, performing his own Piano Sonata, Op. 1. Since 2021, he has released three recordings of solo piano music by Liszt, Kabeláč, Schubert, Busoni, Kirchner, and David Hackbridge Johnson on the Steinway & Sons and Blue Griffin labels.
As a conductor, he led the premiere recordings of his Flute Concertos with Sir James Galway and the London Mozart Players, and his Piano Concertos with Stephen Hough and the BBC Scottish Symphony. Mr. Liebermann has taught composition at the Mannes School of Music in New York City since 2012, where he was founding conductor of the Mannes American Composers Ensemble, a group dedicated to performing the works of living American composers.
Lorna McGhee
Lorna McGhee is principal flute of the Boston Symphony Orchestra, having been appointed by Andris Nelsons in 2024. She was previously the principal flutist of the Pittsburgh Symphony, with which she recorded symphonies of Beethoven, Bruckner, Brahms, Dvořák, and Tchaikovsky, as well as the PSO’s Grammy award-winning Shostakovich Symphony No. 5. She has performed as guest principal with Chicago Symphony Orchestra, Minnesota Orchestra, San Francisco Symphony, London Symphony Orchestra, London Philharmonic, the Philharmonia, Academy of St-Martin-in-the-Fields, and Chamber Orchestra of Europe, among others. Before emigrating to North America, McGhee was co-principal flute of the London’s BBC Symphony Orchestra.
As a concerto soloist, Lorna McGhee has appeared with orchestras in Europe, Asia and North America with such groups as the Scottish Chamber Orchestra, BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra, Boston Symphony, Pittsburgh Symphony, Minnesota Orchestra, Victoria Symphony, Manitoba Chamber Orchestra and the Oregon Bach Festival Orchestra. As winner of the Shell/LSO Scholarship, she performed the Ibert Concerto with London Symphony Orchestra at the Barbican Center in London and in a gala concert in Glasgow’s Royal Concert Hall. Career highlights include performances of Penderecki’s Flute Concerto under the baton of the composer, Bach’s Orchestral Suite No. 2 with both Yannick Nézet-Séguin and Nicholas McGegan, Saariaho’s concerto ‘Aile du songe’ with Osmo Vänskä, Mozart’s G major concerto with Manfred Honeck, Rautavaara’s Flute Concerto, ‘Dances with the Winds’ with Donald Runnicles, and most recently, Allison Loggins-Hull’s flute concerto, “Rhapsody on a Theme by Joni’ with Andris Nelsons in Boston and Tanglewood.
Lorna McGhee’s love of chamber music has led to performances in Europe, North America, Japan, Taiwan, Singapore, India, Sri Lanka, and Australia, in such venues as the Wigmore Hall, Edinburgh International Festival, the Louvre, the Schubertsaal of Vienna’s Konzerthaus, and the Library of Congress. She has participated in festivals including the Australian Festival of Chamber Music, Ottawa Chamberfest, Cleveland Chamberfest, Sitka Festival, and Seattle Chamber Music Society. As a member of Trio Verlaine with her husband, violist David Harding, and harpist Heidi Krutzen, she recorded the album ‘Fin de Siècle. the Music of Debussy and Ravel’ plus ‘Six Departures’ featuring new commissions by Jeffery Cotton and R. Murray Schafer. Along with duo partner Heidi Krutzen, she has commissioned several new works for flute and harp. Her Naxos recording of Bax’s chamber music with the group ‘mobius’ was selected as Editor’s Choice in Gramophone magazine. She has two recital discs: ‘The Hour of Dreaming’ with pianist Piers Lane and ‘Songs without Words’ with pianist Naoko Ishibashi. Following in the footsteps of her mentor, William Bennett, who sought to expand the expressive range of the flute, these recital recordings include several of Lorna’s own transcriptions.
Dedicated to nurturing the upcoming generation of musicians, McGhee has taught flute performance at the University of Michigan, the University of British Columbia, and Carnegie Mellon University, and has given masterclasses for educational institutions and flute festivals around the world, including the Juilliard School, Royal Academy of Music, New World Symphony, and the online platform Tonebase. She is a regular guest teacher at summer schools including the Galway International Flute Festival, Orford Music Academy, and National Youth Orchestra of Canada. Lorna McGhee grew up in Largs, Scotland. She studied with David Nicholson at the Junior Department of the Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama and later with Michie and William Bennett at the Royal Academy of Music in London. She is an honorary Fellow of the Royal Academy of Music and an Altus Artist for Altus Flutes. In addition to her love of music, she is a lifelong student of English literature and the Alexander Technique.
Dayton C. Miller Collection
The Dayton C. Miller Flute Collection is an extraordinary collection of nearly 1,700 flutes and other wind instruments, statuary, iconography, books, music, trade catalogs, tutors, patents, and other materials related to the flute. Items in the collection date from the 16th to the 20th century, are from around the world, and were assembled by Dayton C. Miller (1866-1941) of Cleveland, Ohio. Donated in 1941, these collections form a unique reference collection for the study of the flute.
Dayton C. Miller was a physicist at Case Western Reserve University for about fifty years and worldwide leader in the field of acoustics. From childhood he had been interested in playing the flute, composing for the flute, and making flutes for himself, and began collecting flutes in his quest to understand the quality of sound produced by differing materials. He approached collecting with scientific skill and viewed his collection as a social and historical document.