Gradualism 1b

Comission

Commissioned by claviarea

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Performance duration
15’

Premiere

November 3, 2016, Tokyo, Ryogoku Monten Hall
Kazue Nakamura, Piano

Year of composition
2016

Instrumentation

Piano

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Commentary (English version)

This piece is a so-called "variation". It consists of a theme and 20 variations. The theme is a series of 20 chords, each of which has a different duration (note length), and each of which has slightly different notes. Then, in a variation, from the theme or the previous variation, one of the 20 chords has a different duration and another chord has a slightly different component tones besides. (In some cases, however, the chord with different duration and the chord with different component tones are the same.) By doing this process 20 times (variations), the 20th variation turns into a series of chords that are all slightly different from the first theme, but all with different durations and component tones.
In addition to the process described above, there is also a process in which the theme, which was only a loud (forte) chord, is gradually replaced by a soft (piano) chord as it goes through the variations.
Composing this piece made me realize that music that changes little by little is what I prefer (at that time).

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Commentary (Japanese version)

　この作品は所謂「変奏曲」です。主題と20の変奏から成ります。主題は20個の和音の連なりで、それぞれの和音の持続（音の長さ）が異なり、さらに和音を構成する音もそれぞれ微妙に異なります。次に、変奏では20個の和音のうち一つの持続が主題、もしくは前の変奏から変わり、またそれとは別の和音も構成音が微妙に変わります。但し、持続の変わる和音と構成音が変わる和音が同じ場合もあります。そして、この過程を20回行う（変奏する）ことで、最後の20回目の変奏は最初の主題から微妙に、しかし、全て持続と構成音が異なる和音の連なりへと変貌します。
　また、上述の過程とは別に、強奏（フォルテ）の和音だけだった主題が、変奏を経ていくことで、次第に弱奏（ピアノ）の和音へと置き換えられていく過程も同時に存在します。
　私はこの作品を作曲したことで、少しずつ変化していく音楽が（当時の）自分の好みであるということを認識しました。

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More information (article in Japanese)

https://note.com/daa_kuro/n/n7f22797de651

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