Jean-Pierre Rampal

Let's start with a quote about Rampal from the great Irish flautist James Galway: "He was a great influence on the flute world and the musical world in general, bringing to ordinary folk through his music-making a charm which enhanced their everyday lives." 

For most musical people living in the mid-twentieth century, Jean-Pierre Rampal was the flute.  He played concertos with major symphony orchestras, he played Japanese folk melodies with Lily Laskine, he played ragas with Ravi Shankar, he played jazz with Claude Bolling, and he played around with the Muppets! 

He was the Man with the Golden Flute (famously, a solid 18k gold flute made by Louis Lot in 1869).  His repertoire was seemingly endless and his technique flawless.  This clip has him playing Cantabile et Presto by Enescu (with John Steele Ritter accompanying):

Rampal was a Chevalier and Officier de la Légion d’Honneur, Commandeur de l’Ordre National du Mérite, Commandeur de l’Ordre des Arts et Lettres, with the Grande Médaille de la Ville Paris and the Japanese Order du Tréasor Sacre... When he died in 2000, French President Jacques Chirac said that "his flute spoke to the heart. A light in the musical world has just flickered out."