These are 24 etudes that I composed for solo piano.  I hope you enjoy them! (I will keep editing these performances throughout this year.)

24 Etudes for Piano

This is a set of 24 preludes which are based on ideas of various toys (or child's play). Like the set of etudes I wrote before this, each piece is assiged a different key. The order of the preludes is organized in such a way that it begins with the feeling of summer in the first prelude, progresses through autumn, winter, spring, and then back to summer towards the end.

"Toy Preludes" for Piano

This piece describes my favorite time of the year that is so fresh and bright. 

爽やかで明るい４月の日を描写した。

Etude in E Major "A Windy Day in April" (４月の風)

I aimed to capture fleeting images, like how the shadows dance in the wind. The beginning theme is repeated, but it arrives at a different outcome each time.  The middle part is somewhat menacing, which is overcome by brightness at the end.

踊る影のような儚さを表現した。出だしのテーマは何度も繰り返されるが、それは毎回異なったところにたどり着く。中間部はやや焦燥感があるが、明るいエンディングで闇は消える。

Etude in C# Minor "Falling Shadows" （落ちゆく影）

This is modeled on Chopin Etude Op. 10-4, and has some clear references to it. But it turned out to be not even remotely similar to it. 

ショパンエチュードOp. 10-4をモデルにして書いてそのモチーフも少し引用したが、まったく似通ってもいない曲になった。



Etude in G Minor “A Gust of Black Wind” (漆黒の突風)

This light-hearted piece is the first one from my set of 24 etudes. Since I have never written etudes before, I used it as a way to “test the water” before writing longer ones (which means that this is a warmup not only for the performer, but also for the composer). It uses chromatic lines to portray a playful character, and has a middle section that is more capricious.

指慣らしをしているような短くて軽快な半音階の曲。これは初めて書くエチュードだったので、自分の作曲のウォームアップのための曲でもあった。プレイフルで、中間部は気まぐれな感じ。

Etude in Db Major "A Warmup"（ウォーミングアップ）

A short piece that features a fleeting moment of conflict, or perhaps, a challenge. There is a brief lyrical theme that functions like bookends at the beginning and at the end, contributing to the transient feel of the etude.

いきなり現れて消える「対立」を描いた曲。曲の出だしと終わりにある短い叙情的なテーマが、このドラマの儚さを物語っている。

Etude in Eb Major "Sudden Opposition"（突然の対立）

This short work portrays ephemerality in life. 
The introduction depicts a spider descending from a hanging silk. The moving figures of the hand that characterize this piece were inspired by a mixture of fascination and chills going up my back when I watch spider legs move as they crawl. The main theme depicts an elegant, innocent and carefree courtship, which abruptly turns into an aggressive middle section, where they mate. After that, life simply goes on, with the ending portraying a sense of vanity.

人生の儚さを描く曲。イントロでは蜘蛛が１匹糸からぶらさがって降りてくる。テーマを弾く時のモゴモゴした手の動きは、蜘蛛の歩き方を真似ているのだ。（それと、私が蜘蛛を眺めている時に背中がぞわっとする感じも表現している）はじめは気ままでイノセントな様子の蜘蛛たちだが、中間部では攻撃的になり交尾する。その後は何もなかったように曲は続いていくが、締めくくりには空虚さが感じられる。

Etude in D Minor "Spiders in Love"（恋をした蜘蛛）

Etude with sixths in both hands. 
I envisioned a serene starry sky as I wrote the opening. After the introduction appears the first theme section, which consists of repeating cycles of a singular melody that seems to be trying to erupt through. The piece finally comes to a breaking point, after which the tension gradually resides, wavering between keys of D and A major. (I was working on this piece at the time when I was about to give birth, which could have influenced how it turned out.)


両手が６度の音程で動く曲。出だしは穏やかな星空を想像して書いた。その後で現れるのは、噴火しそうなエネルギーで何度も繰り返される旋律。そしてそれはニ長調とイ長調の間を行ったり来たりしながら極限点まで昇りつめる。（出産直前に書いていた曲なので、それが内容に影響を及ぼしたかもしれない）

Etude in A Major "Bustling Waves"（うねる波）

I wrote the first two movements of this sonata long ago. When I listened to them again this summer, they sounded juvenile but there were things I liked about them as well, so I decided to polish them and add the last movement and unify some of the thematic elements. 

The first movement is in clear sonata form with a repeated exposition.

Sonata for Viola and Piano, I. Allegro

This movement is in rondo form (ABACA, in which C recalls the melody from the second movement) The ending brings back various thematic elements from the first two movements, particularly the motive D-Eb.



Sonata for Viola and Piano, III. Rondo

Folding paper into different forms (origami) is a popular kids' play in Japan. I remembered from my childhood how colorful paper cranes hang in the air, and wrote this piece as I pictured how light shines through them.

Paper Birds

It is not very emotional or melancholic, but rather simply portrays the sense of being in the continuous sonority of the dripping rain.

Rain Continues

I envion a scene during a peaceful train trip where one notices a scary ghost train approaching them. 

Although the piece is inspired by a spooky toy train, it's not really a kid-like piece since most of it rather reflects my own inner illusions and compulsions.

Ghost Train

A little girl is enamored by a necklace she sees for the first time. The main melody appears twice, in which the upper voice is added the second time, contributing to the impression of the jewel that shines in a dim room.

What Beauty

Spinning tops are one of the toys I enjoyed as a child. This piece has a perpetual motion in the right hand like the spinning toy.

Spinning Top

This piece was inspired by a photo of ornaments of two cats hanging on the cabinet. They are the kind of cats that would enjoy tasty dissonances and find laughter in mundane life as they whisper amongst themselves in low voices when people are not looking. The piece begins as a quiet story-telling monologue in 12-bar blues format, but becomes more conversational and playful in the second refrain.

Gossipping Cats

I have been spending snowy mornings at home quietly building flowers with my daughter. Time flies by from day to day in this busy life, but at times it seems like I am watching it stand still in silence. This simple piece captures this feeling.

Blooming

I could hear the music in my head when I saw this wacky cat that looked ready to set out. It has two main themes - the beginning melody in G major (“adventure theme”) and the pastoral theme in F major. I pictured rockets flying around towards the end, after which the F major theme returns for the finale. To me, this feels like finding home in oneself after the hectic adventure.

Aspiring Cat

This piece depicts a state of daydreaming as though getting absorbed into the light as one looks into the transparent crystal. Ab major is a warm key for me, mostly due to the flats. Within this key, I intended to portray the cool glistening by the use of the white keys in the inner voice.

Dreaming

Although this piece is one of the three cat-related pieces in the "Toy Preludes,"  this particular cat himself is not a toy, but a very real one; the firm weightiness and grounded feel of the cat is portrayed throughout the main theme in Db major. He is settled in his cozy spot, surrounded by his favorite things. There are also moments depicting lightness and elegance that complement the atmosphere.

Incidentally, this piece marks half way point in the series of 24 preludes (yay!)

Cozy Cat

It begins in a neutral manner using only white keys, unaffected and transparent. Bubbles float up and wander… and then they pop. They reflect some warm colors, while portraying elements of fragility and emptiness at the same time. The ending is the last bubble growing increasingly distant, until it finally disappears.

Bubble

I saw this photo of a somewhat quaint-looking duck, and this piece came into my mind along with quacking sounds (the opening motive portrays this). This duck has its own unique world and enjoys living in it as he rides his bicycle around, going faster and faster. Although the piece contains shady harmonies to reflect the darker tint in this photo, I would say that this piece is a celebration of the whimsical duck’s life and freedom.

Bicycle Duck

This piece describes events in the subconscious mind that expand and develop, opening up into space with a sense of wander and gracefulness. The contrasting middle section goes into a battle-like game that portrays the heightened state of mind.

Puzzles

A photo of the famous Russian dolls, matryoshka, intrigued me to write this piece. This prelude often works in sets of three phrases like the three matryoshkas. The beginning theme in C# minor is imbued with a sense of calm elegance and composure, while the other theme in F major shows a more rustic and humorous character.

Matryoshka

Although this piece is also related to toys, it is not about a child, but rather depicts the long life journey through reflection as one stares into the fire. The teddy bear here acts as a symbol of home, comfort and childhood. Although seemingly in F major, the piece is centered around the theme that is in A minor.

Teddy by the Fireplace

This is a lighthearted and Romantically-inclined piece that is inspired by my little daughter who is into all “pretty things” in this world like flowers, raindrops and butterflies. Watching her humming and coloring papers freely without a care in the world, I feel like I can relive such moments of my life again.

Coloring Butterflies

I saw this photo of asian masks, and looking at their facial expressions with eyes wide open, I thought of how deeply one can be absorbed in things. Portraying that altered state of mind within the masks, there is tension in the air throughout the piece with vivid colors with somewhat impressionistic materials in the middle section.

Focused

I liked playing with a magnifying glass as a child, so I chose this as a theme for this prelude. This piece has some polyphonic elements and reminds me of monks chanting in some parts. This piece is symbolic of how perspectives change everything in life - things can be quite stern, and sometimes be surprisingly forgiving at the same time.

Lens of Truth

This is a fast and volatile piece with the repeated triplets portraying the unknown future as the dice roll out in different directions. It has a tensely driven beginning and ending, and is characterized by the dual relationship of E major and C minor.

Dice

Writing the “Toy Preludes” brought me back to childhood, but my favorite activity back then (and now) was simply daydreaming. The photo of these balls got me daydreaming and reflecting. I envisioned broad silence through the wide chords… Objective and unattached, the piece evolves in various phases, from the beginning through chaos, and back into silence.

Planets

Snow globes are so simple, yet they encapsulate such beautiful moments. I remembered the times I spent with my parents as I wrote this (especially since my dad is sick in bed all this year). I aimed to keep the harmonies simple with some subtle colors. The descending 4-note motive (which is first hidden in the left hand) that develops into a climax in the middle section portrays the flurry of snow recalling a brief emotional outburst.

Snow Globe

There is a summer festival in Japan where children make paper crafts to hang on bamboo trees. Based on the legend that this is to be the only day in the whole year when two lovers (stars) that were separated by the Milky Way get to meet one another, people also make wishes and hang them on the bamboo. I think this tradition shows that we want to believe that there are miracles in this world - that there are times when impossible things become possible. 

This prelude is warm, bright and vast. It consists of three main components: The first is the light and airy introduction and ending portraying paper crafts wavering on the tree. The second component depicts the calm stars above, in G major. The third part is the theme from the first prelude (“Paper Birds”). This theme that is shared between the first and last preludes act as bookends as they unite the idea of things we humans make with our hands and send out our thoughts up into the universe.

Summer Wishes

This is an exercise for beginner viola, using only notes A, D and G. It was originally written without accompaniment, so I added the piano part.

ヴィオラの開放弦で弾く初心者用のエクササイズ曲で、ラとレとソしか音がないメロディー。伴奏を加えてみた。

Exercise for Open Strings on Viola, with added accompaniment （ヴィオラの開放弦のエクササイズに伴奏をつけたもの）

I am a classical pianist based in Canada. Many of the pieces I upload here are for  solo piano. Some are performed by me, but the performances of the recent uploads are created on Staffpad app on my iPad. 

The score of all my etudes and some other small pieces can be found on the link below (more to come).

Having completed a master's degree in music theory and a doctorate in piano performance, I am currently teaching and composing. I adore music analysis. I would love to meet and connect with other composers and get to know your works!

Lemon

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