[Today's Pick Up] Welly For Gender and Vibraphone / Mizuki Aita

I will be introducing some Golden Hearts Publications piece per week.
Please give me a few moments of your time!

Here's today's piece.

Welly For Gender and Vibraphone / Mizuki Aita

Printed version
https://global.goldenheartspublications.com/products/ghaa-09

PDF version
https://global.goldenheartspublications.com/products/ghaa-09-pdf

Reference music：

Program notes:

In January 2018, I met Welly. Strongly inspired by his exceptional musicality, my desire to share musical time with him grew stronger by the day, and in the fall of that year, I composed and premiered a duo piece for gundel and vibraphone for his return to Japan. We were both passionately excited and promised to meet again.

It was decided to invite Welly back in April 2020 for a Tokyo Opera City B to C performance. I had obtained a visa, booked airfare and accommodations, and everything was ready to go, but when the performance was postponed in September 2020, my heart was not in it. Perhaps inviting Welly would be difficult under the current circumstances.

Then, a beautiful baby was posted on his Facebook page. The long-awaited first child, Luhung Athaya Putra, also known as Anaku, a gift from God, was born into the world. Welly's Facebook page had a video of the baby's baptism. The slightly croaky male voice spread out to encompass Anaku as he came into the world.

Days later, as soon as I woke up in the morning, I heard him singing in four-part harmony. Immediately I wrote it down on a piece of stave paper and scrutinized the details. I thought it would be a blessing music for Welly, his wife Wahyu, and Anaku, which I could do now. I immediately recorded what I played on the vibraphone and sent it to Welly.

"Aita-san, this is the most beautiful gift of all. I feel like this music represents God's gift of a son I have been waiting for so long to have, and this music represents that feeling, just like the name Anaku comes from. Cute, peaceful, hopeful, and wishing for a healthy growth... I listened to this song with my wife Wahyu and Anaku. They looked so comfortable. Thank you Aita-san for such a warm gift to my son and my family...”

Based on these experiences, I composed two new movements. The tape recording at the beginning of the second movement is a collage of the actual singing at the baptism.

The third movement is a lullaby dedicated to Anaku, in which I attempted to express a peaceful spiritual journey in duo with Gender.

(Mizuki Aita)

 

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Shuhei Umemoto
Golden Hearts Publications Global Store