An event held in each 2 on 1 occasions at the Kawai Music Salon “Pause” in Aoyama-Omotesando. Adults gather and freely—or perhaps selfishly?—doodle with sound on their instruments.
There are 2 rules.
(1) Drink properly before the performance begins.
(2) During the performance, eat and drink properly and do not listen (laughs).
This kind of play is enjoyable once in a while.
I performed Fauré’s Sicilienne. It is included in the score collection compiled by Ayako Takagi, Flute Solo: Ayako Takagi Best Collection—Les chemins de l’amour.
I became an instant fan of Ayako Takagi after hearing her play Piazzolla’s “Winter in Buenos Aires” on NHK-FM. I bought this book because I wanted the score for that piece. (It is recorded on her CD Sicilienne.) I immediately went home and tried playing it… and it was difficult… orz
On the CD she plays it effortlessly, emotionally, and with extraordinary musicality, so I had not realized it was such a difficult piece. But it is difficult. The highest note is D in the 4th octave. Compared with this, something like Prokofiev’s sonata is easier….
There was no way I could be ready in time—after all, I had obtained the score only 1 weeks earlier—so I abruptly switched to Sicilienne. In a display of unseriousness, I began practicing at 2 p.m. on the day of the performance, which began at half past 5 p.m…. Even so, I somehow managed to play it through.
Pause has been renovated and now has a better atmosphere than it did 2 years ago. Perhaps it is my imagination, but the acoustics also seem better. The low ceiling means one cannot expect a spacious, lingering resonance, but as a salon for adults at play, it is very good.