Japan

Imagine a stretch of water at dusk. The light fades slowly and everything seems suspended. Suddenly, an almost imperceptible ripple appears, expanding in circles. This is how this programme begins.

For several years now, Kotaro Fukuma has been exploring the theme of ‘shimmering water’, inspired by the kanji character ‘洸’ (kō), which combines the concepts of water and light. For this programme, he has selected pieces to evoke that landscape. The journey begins with Mendelssohn’s Gondellied, a gondola song composed in 1837 and little known within his catalogue. He will then perform Bizet’s Chants du Rhin, a cycle of six miniatures evoking a romantic journey along the Rhine River. 

On the other hand, if there is one composer who knew how to capture the shifting nuances of water, it was Claude Debussy. Although these works were conceived independently, Fukuma brings them together here as if they were part of a single sonic narrative, where water transforms into reflection, current and movement. The programme also evokes the imagery of a sea voyage. In Wagner’s opera Tristan und Isolde, the Irish princess Isolde sets sail with Tristan for Cornwall to marry King Marke; whilst Smetana’s The Moldau depicts various scenes along the Vltava River, from its upper course, following its flow until it joins the Elbe River.