Fragilities is an extended work for flute and cello, commissioned by cellist Rohan de Saram and flautist William Sleath with a generous grant from the Britten-Pears Foundation. It was premièred and recorded at Falmouth University in November 2014. 

The title reflects the work's preoccupation with the fragilities and ambiguities of sound: sounds isolated by silence; sounds on the borders of silence; tones on the borders of noise; sounds growing from and dying to nothing; the suggestions and fragmentation of theme, ambiguities of tempo and pulse. It employs extended technique for both instruments, in particular the production of extremely high cello harmonics and flute breath tones.

To obtain a copy of the full score (which also doubles as the players' parts), please visit https://chrisbestmusic.com/works/fragilities