Lim Kang Ning (b.1994)

A Japanese Poem for solo piano

A Japanese Poem was written in celebration of Kris Foundation’s long-standing friendship with Miyuki Washimiya. While this piece is not inspired by a particular Japanese poem as its title might suggest, it is a musical representation of a Japanese poem I wished I could write.

I was inspired by the text In Praise of Shadows by Jun’ichiro Tanizaki. It speaks of a nostalgia for traditional Japanese aesthetics and highlights the subtleties of the unique Japanese sensibility. Although this nostalgia sometimes veers into the territory of romanticising the past, Tanizaki makes some interesting observations about the importance of light and shadows in Japanese and Chinese culture. Examples range from how light is taken in by Chinese and Japanese paper rather than deflecting it, to the importance of shadow in Japanese architecture and the appreciation of lacquer and food under different lighting.

Time flows in various ways in this piece. On one hand, the music is like a story and it unfolds linearly like a through-composed poem. On the other hand, within this singular narrative, the music is divided into sections that alternate between being ‘whole’ and fragmented in nature; thus making it cyclical as well. The piece can also be thought of as a set of variations. The origins of all the musical ideas in the various sections of the piece can be traced back to the first two sections of this piece.

The piece begins like an austere ceremony, in the way I imagined Nō and Gagaku (Japanese traditional art forms) to be codified to the point of ritualism. Nothing is improvised; from the size of instruments used, to the fingering and vocal techniques. This section is then interrupted by quick melodic fragments that seem to appear out of nowhere. However, as the piece progresses, these fragments repurposes itself to become a part of the syntax of this piece. The piece ends with a quotation of a famous Japanese folk song which I have a fond memory of.

A Japanese Poem was premiered by pianist Miyuki Washimiya at Kris Foundation’s “Souvenirs de fete” on 29 November 2022 at the Esplanade Recital Studio.