Instrumentation: sopranino saxophone and piano

Duration: 10 minutes

Year composed: 2024

First performance:  Marie Kikuchi (sopranino saxophone), Michiyo Haneishi (piano), Space Do, Tokyo, Japan, January 13th 2025

Program note: The title Sur cette barque instable comes from a poem by Ono no Komachi. It was written in response to poet Bunya no Yasuhide who invited her to visit him in the countryside. This piece is part of a diptych with the piece Une herbe flottante à la racine coupée for soprano saxophone, also inspired by the poem. It explores the dichotomy between the violence of instrumental gestures and their apparent serenity, like an echo of the poet’s feelings, fluctuating between frustration and resignation. The relationship between the piano and the saxophone evolves along a non linear route through the piece, alternating between contiguity and distanciation.

Sur cette barque instable is warmly dedicated to its dedicate Marie Kikuchi.

Score: https://www.artchipel.net/en/produit/sur-cette-barque-instable/