Pleasant Pieces, Book 2

Piano

Work Details

Pleasant Pieces, Book 2
(1992)
I. Nocturne in A minor –
II. Pastorale –
III. Seashore –
IV. The Darkening –
V. A Legend –
VI. Poltergeist –
WORK DURATION
12:45
WORK CODE
ME06
Instrumentation
Piano
COMMISSION DETAILS
Georgina Zellan-Smith (with financial support from Creative New Zealand)
The image above is indicative only and may not reflect the specific instrumentatioN. thE image has been generated using an AI model or licensed for use by unless otherwise credited.

Nocturne in A minor. This piece is borrowed from the composer's ballet suite Promenade as a balancing companion-piece to the "Nocturne" in Book I of this set. It is a melancholic pas de deux with a passionate middle section and a peaceful recapitulation.

Pastorale. This is based on a two-bar modal melody and its flowering into a brief cadenza-like passage. A rhapsodic middle section is followed by a return to a version of the opening tune with its note-order reversed.

Seashore. Palm Beach, Waiheke Island, on a summer's day. The waves swell and break and there are periods of comparitive calm when the sea ripples and sparkles.

The Darkening. Sunset on a Waiheke summer's day. The bush, with its many shades of green, deepens into ominous darkness.

A Legend. Based on two phrases, this piece tells the story of a far-off northern land.

Poltergeist. A hectic scherzo, sometimes playful, sometimes mischeivious. It stamps its foot loudly and vanishes.