in Watercolors

Featuring

Tomomi Matsubara
Déodat de Séverac
Erkki Melartin
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
Jean Sibelius
Toshio Hosokawa

Edvard Grieg

Did you know?

1/7

Recording & Production

This album was recorded in September 2017 at Ebuno Izumi-no-Mori Hall in Izumisano, Japan, using custom-made DC amplifier microphones and a TASCAM DA-3000 recorder.

Compositional Technique

Toshio Hosokawa's "Melodia" is the only piece on this album originally written for accordion; all other works are piano pieces, except for Mozart's "Adagio for Glass Harmonica."

Interpretation

The performer, Tomomi Matsubara, plays a classical accordion with buttons for both the right and left hands, a type commonly used in France, Eastern Europe, and Finland.

Interpretation

Tomomi Matsubara, the performer, chose the album's theme of "nostalgia" because she believes the accordion has a mysterious power to evoke this feeling in listeners.

Interpretation

The album's title, "in Watercolors," reflects the performer's realization that the accordion's lack of a percussive "core" sound, unlike a piano, allows for a gentle, transparent touch akin to watercolor painting.

Instruments

The accordion, patented in Vienna in the early 19th century, is considered a relatively new instrument in historical terms, with its classical form capable of over five octaves emerging in the 20th century.

Instruments

The sound of Toshio Hosokawa's "Melodia" is compared to the Japanese Sho, an instrument used in Gagaku (ancient imperial court music), due to both instruments producing sound with free reeds.