Takemitsu: And then I knew 'twas Wind

As harpists, we are not familiar with fixed chamber music groups like a string quartet or a woodwind quintet f.e., but the combination of flute, viola and harp -after the example of Debussy’s trio from 1914- is steadily on the rise of changing this. Many composers of the 20th century were inspired by Debussy’s ‘Sonate en trio’ and many ensembles commissioned composers to write for this cast. This is also the case for ‘And then I knew ’twas wind’ by Toru Takemitsu, commissioned in 1991 by Mr. Akira Obi for the trio of Aurèle Nicolet, Naoko Yoshino and Nobuko Imai.

We can count ourselves very lucky that Takemitsu -being one of the great composers of the 20th century- took on quite a lot of harp in his repertoire. We can probably deduce -like Toshio Hosokawa told in his interview- that the main reason for this, is that the harp has a sound that leans very close to nature but also resembles so well the sound of traditional instruments, especially when it is tuned in quarter tones, like Takemitsu often requests in his music. (f.e. Rain spell, Les fils des étoiles,..)

Looking at his oeuvre, the titels already reveal his extreme sensitivity for nature and sound precision. When you look at the score of this trio, hardly any note is lacking an indication of articulation or nuance.

He doesn’t use any pioneering techniques for harp in this piece, but however does succeed in conjuring a whole new sound spectrum out of our instrument. By executing this work, I often feel that he searches ways to prolong our sound, like a string player using his bow, all the way into the silence, which is as important as the notes surrounding it.

Take the double harmonics, which he often uses, they are a lot softer than a normal finger stroke and in addition the overtones produce a very rich sound. In the melodies of viola and flute, the harp sometimes doubles one note in unisono, softening also the attaca and lengthening the illusion of the harp sound.

His refinement, masterful creativity, his admiration for Debussy, the way he addresses each of the three instruments in their most sensitive way, are just few ingredients that make this trio, time after time -for me anyway- a truly amazing exploration.

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