Fuzzy Bird Sonata

Takashi Yoshimatsu (b. 1953) grew up in Tokyo. In his formative years, he found himself utterly captivated by the symphonies of musical giants like Beethoven and Tchaikovsky. Upon completing his education at Keio University, Yoshimatsu's journey led him to delve into the realms of jazz and rock, where he developed a keen fascination for the avant-garde realms of rough electronic music, seeking out innovative possibilities within its folds. These explorations crystallized his opposition to what he perceived as the discordant tendencies of "unmusical" modern music, compelling him to champion a distinctive "new lyricism" in his compositions. He has published many works, his first work being Threnody to Toki in 1981. He has continued to publish many works for solo saxophone, orchestra and more. These include five symphonies and other orchestral works, eight concertos, various stage works, a series of chamber music related to birds, works for piano and guitar, and some works for traditional Japanese instruments.

Fuzzy Bird Sonata, written for the famous saxophonist Nobuya Sugawa in 1981, was a part of Yoshimatsu’s ongoing “Bird” series. Nobuya Sugawa states that there wasn’t a clear translation from Japanese to English in the prose of the title. Fuzzy Bird is NOT meant to be about a fuzzy little bird like a baby chicken. It is supposed to be you looking at a fuzzy image of a bird from far away. Fuzzy Bird combines many classical styles of musical form, but adds a twist by incorporating mixed meter and the use of extended techniques in the saxophone part. In spite of the Yoshimatsu’s statement about the title of the piece, it is hard not to imagine fuzzy little birds when listening to the music.  “Run, bird” begins with the piano and saxophone playing in unison, almost as if a mother bird is showing her child how to fly. Peckish little chirps erupt into a cadenza-like section. This is followed by a new section with a jazzy groove through the entirety of the piece, until the saxophone reaches the highest note in the piece. The saxophone slows down like they are soaring high above the sky. The saxophone and piano play a jazz ballad,and the saxophone plays an ascending pentatonic melody as if the bird is flying higher and higher. The energy soon picks back up and the bird is on the ground running again until the final energetic ending. 

Deconstruct 

Jenni Watson (b. 1985) is a dynamic voice in the classical saxophone world, and her music is known to bridge classical styles with modern influences. Growing up in Edinburgh, Scotland, Watson showed in their early years a prodigious talent for arranging and playing the saxophone. She attended the Chetham's School of Music where she studied with Andrew Wilson. After Chetham’s School of Music, she attended the Royal Northern College of Music, where she studied with Rob Buckland and Andy Scott. Watson has written many works for the classical saxophone repertoire and has received several commissions from the different members of the classical saxophone community around the world, the Apollo Quartet, and Pennsylvania State University. Her music is created from her curiosity of combining instruments with electronics and her multi-woodwind background. 

Deconstruct is inspired by the process of reverse engineering. Reverse engineering is a process where you break down software or machinery. When it is broken down, engineers study how the basic parts of the machine cause the machine to function. During this piece, the soprano saxophone goes through a searching procedure to find the melody. The soprano tries different methods of finding the melody, including changing the rhythm and style of the piece. At one point the soprano goes from a dance melody to a lyrical ballad.  The saxophone part seems to go through many “trial and errors” of trying to fit in with the background track, until the end when it seems to realize that the melody is the combination of electronics and soprano saxophone. Watson states in the program notes, that the human aspect of Deconstruct is to, “compare it to the various stages of discovery - awe and bewilderment at first, intrigue and analysis, frustration through misunderstanding, and finally joy upon realization”. Deconstruct is commissioned by Alastair Penman, who premiered at The Royal Northern College of Music Sax Day in 2015.

As I Am

Steven Banks (b. 1993) is an emerging artist who advocates for diversity and inclusion in music education, performance and newly commissioned works in the classical world. He earned his Bachelor of Music degree from Indiana University Jacobs School of Music and Masters of Music degree from Northwestern University. Banks gave a talk on TEDx NorthWestern about the ways to overcome institutionalized prejudices against women and people of color. Banks is an accomplished performer as well. He is the bari saxophonist for the award winning Kenari Quartet and he is the first saxophonist to earn a spot on the Young Artist Concert Roster and won first place at 2019 Young Concert Artists International Auditions. Banks is currently premiering a new concerto with the National Symphony Orchestra at the John F. Kennedy Center. He currently serves as the Saxophone and Chamber Music Faculty and Artist-in-Residence at the Cleveland Institute of Music.

As I Am is a piece inspired by the struggle and joy of artistic creativity. This piece shifts from the joys of creating music, to the struggles of creating something new, to  becoming burnt out. Banks describes it this way in his program notes:

“Each of us has an undeniable spark of humanity within us which sets us apart from anyone that has ever lived or ever will. We each have the capacity to leave a lasting impact on the world through our relationships, creations, and ideas. In the world that we live in today, it is so easy to lose touch with the spark that is deep within our consciousness. We are set back by failure, fear, the everyday hustle of life, and so much more.” 

As I Am shows these “sparks of humanity” by the melodies provided by the bari saxophone and the piano. The fear and struggle creeps in with the banging of the piano keys and the bari saxophone trills. This frustration rises until the bari saxophone roars into a multiphonic scan. Then there is a point of clarity as a quotation of  Liszt’s Piano Sonata in B minor is played by the solo bari saxophone, followed by an introspective cadenza by the saxophone.The ensemble then joins back together to finish a gospel sounding hymn.. As I Am was premiered at the 2019 Young Concert Artists Final Concert by Steven Banks. 

Decruck Sonata 

Fernade Decruck (1896-1954) grew up in Gaillic, a town in the southern region of France. At a young age she was known for her talent on the piano and through her early compositions. At the age of 8, she won first prize in music theory and first prize piano at the Toulouse Conservatory. As she got older, her musical passions only grew, as she attended the Paris Conservatory and earned a degree in composition and piano accompaniment. Decruck then moved on to improvising for silent films as well as teaching a harmony class at the Paris Conservatory.. She married her husband, and saxophonist, Maurice Decruck in 1924. In 1928, the couple moved to New York to compose new music for Americans and for Maurice to audition for the New Philharmonic. Maurice landed the job as classical saxophonist for the orchestra and she began to compose many saxophone works for her husband to play with that orchestra. She continued also to write many more pieces for wind instruments, such as woodwind trios and reed trios. During the last part of her life, she moved back to France and became the  head organist for the Saint-Louis church in Fountainbleau. In 1952, she suffered a stroke after playing organ during midnight mass. She never fully recovered and died of another stroke on Aug. 6 1954. 

Sonata in Ut# is written for solo saxophone or viola and piano. Sonata in Ut# (C#) was premiered in 1938.  There are many debates of which version came first, but many believe the saxophone version is first due to the dedication to famous saxophonist Marcel Mule. The fourth movement “Nocturne et Rondel” has two parts, as indicated by the title of the piece. Nocturne means that the music sounds like the night. Rondel is composed of a starting refrain then separate melodies that go back to the refrain. The “Nocturne” section begins with a mysterious saxophone solo that falls into the lower range of the instrument as the piano accompaniment joins in. The piano and the saxophone pass back the original melody until the energy fades into a quiet resolve. The Rondel begins with a soft trill that erupts into quick descending runs in the piano. The saxophone provides a haunting melody over the piano’s runs. This continues as the saxophone and the piano trade off the melody and quick flourishing runs. As the piece builds and builds, the saxophone leads the piano into a grand finale section. The saxophone plays the opening refrain melody as it reaches its highest note in the piece. The piano plays a final climatic chord to end the piece.

Air

Paul Hayden (b. 1956) is a modern composer who is creating contemporary works for saxophone, chamber groups, orchestra and wind ensemble. Hayden was born and grew up in Mississippi, where he eventually attended Louisiana State University for undergraduate and graduate degrees in music composition.  Hayden has received awards, grants, or recognition from ASCAP, the American Music Center, Truman State University/MACRO Society Composition Competition (grand prize winner for Filé), and the Virginia College Band Directors National Association (for Scintilla and Chalumeau, both for wind ensemble). His music has been performed in Europe, Russia, China, and throughout the United States. 

Air was written for Katherine Kelmer (flute) and Griffin Campell (saxophone), both professors at LSU, in 2022. The second movement, which is performed on this evening’s recital, is in ABA form with a coda. The movement begins with the saxophone giving a jazzy swing ostinato (repeating) rhythm in the lower range. The flute adds a striking melody in its upper range. The saxophone and flute play together in fast ascending runs that build tension until they both fall down and restart the main rhythm again. In the middle section, the saxophone and flute create a trance-like melody with repeating climbing intervals until a sustained note. The tension builds again and the ensemble bursts out into the jazzy rhythm again. In the coda of this piece, the flute and saxophone both start together, but then slowly diverge as the flute gets increasingly faster as the saxophone gets increasingly slower into a final climatic note.