Marek PASIECZNY 五大 GO-DAI Concerto | Toru TAKEMITSU: In Memoriam

SCORE: “Aukso“ Orchestra| conducted by Maestro Marek Moś “ | composed, orchestrated and performed by Marek PASIECZNY 五大 |五大の協奏曲 | 武満徹：イン・メモリアム | ギターとオーケストラのための協奏曲 | マレク・パシェツニ作曲 THE 五大GO-DAI CONCERTO |Toru Takemitsu: in memoriam | for guitar and orchestra | composed by Marek Pasieczny I. Earth -- the beginning of life | 第１楽章...大地 - 生命の始まり II. Spirit of Fire | 第２楽章...火の精霊 III. Whispers of Droplets | 第３楽章...水滴の囁き Guy TRAVISS (’CLASSICAL GUITAR MAGAZINE’): “The Go-Dai Concerto is not only a triumph for the guitar technically; it marks a turning point in the instrument’s repertoire for the concerto medium. For many commentators the guitar’s relationship with ensemble has always had great potential, but few examples have come to the fore to define the instrument in this way. Pasieczny has shown here not only what level of musical interaction is possible with orchestra, but also how the guitar might come to redefine the orchestral palette for a new crop of composers. I am certain that its significance will lie in its future status as a milestone for the guitar canon.“ “To compose is to give meaning to a stream of sounds that surrounds and permeates the world.“ (Toru Takemitsu) “I can imagine a garden superimposed over the image of an orchestra. Perhaps it can be said that I am more a gardener, than a composer. I don’t like to construct sounds like great architecture (...) but rather set up a place where sounds meet each other. I don’t construct but create some order which makes my music quite close to the idea of a Japanese garden. In the garden there are different cycles, short and long; there is mobility and immobility. The growing of trees and the growing of grass is different.“ (Toru Takemitsu) The idea behind the Japanese or Zen Garden is based on the Japanese philosophy of the five elements or 五大 - go dai (literally translated as “five great“). These elements are, in order of ascending power: earth (Chi / Tsuchi), water (Sui / Mizu), fire (Ka / Hi), wind (Fū Kaze) and void/spirit (Kū / Sora). 地 Chi or tsuchi, meaning “Earth“, represents the hard, solid objects of the world. 水 Sui or mizu, meaning “Water“, represents the fluid, flowing, formless things in the world. 火 Ka or hi, meaning “Fire“, represents the energetic, forceful moving things in the world. 風 Fū or kaze, meaning “Wind“, represents things that grow, expand, and enjoy freedom of movement. 空 Kū or sora, most often translated as “Void“, but also meaning “sky“ or “heaven“, represents those things composed of pure energy such as spirit, thought, and creative energy. The 五大 Go-Dai Concerto stems from the idea of fusing music with nature, borrowing from the philosophy that governs much of Japanese culture and traditions -- the go dai or Japanese five elements. The first movement: Earth -- the beginning of life portrays the first and most basic element of “earth“ (Chi / Tsuchi). This loose form of variations is based on a four-bar melody built on a six-note scale. From these four bars ’rises’ all the subsequent complexities of the material and orchestration and ultimately shapes the entire first movement. It is an introduction to all groups of instruments and the soloist. The second movement: Spirit of Fire illustrates the element of “fire“ (Ka / Hi) through special treatments of instrumentation and sound materials (dynamics, agogics, articulation and timbre) to create crude, wild, scintillating, energetic, turbulent and extreme-reaching motions. The third movement: Whispers of Droplets blends the two elements of water (Sui / Mizu) and wind (Fū Kaze) into an indivisible, inseparable whole, supporting and infusing each other. Delicate, fleeting, shiny, and in dozens of shades, the water element flows, transforms and is pushed ahead by the many changes of the wind. Special sonoristic effects have been used in an attempt to capture the ethereal, airy, unrestricted and open nature of these elements. Although not directly represented, the fifth and highest ranking element, 空 Kū or sora (void / spirit) appears as an underlying factor that runs through all the movements. In the first movement, 空 Kū or sora surfaces as the essence and creation of life. In the second movement, 空 Kū or sora emerges in spritely form, whereas in the last movement, the energy flow is more static, symbolizing the final meaning of the element: void. This concerto is composed in memory of Japanese composer Toru Takemitsu. Commissioned by the 14th International Guitar Festival “Silesian Guitar Autumn 2012“ in Tychy, Poland and dedicated to Professor Alina Gruszka. Marek Pasieczny August 2012 in Pretoria, South Africa #classicalguitar #marekpasieczny