On March 26 Salt Lake City pianist Kimi Kawashima will perform one of the most important piano works from the 20th century: John Cage’s Sonatas and Interludes for prepared piano. Cage’s work was a monumental step forward in writing for piano, and introduced preparations as a new and enduring genre in the piano music repertoire. Kawashima was interviewed by Reichel Recommends via email.
Kimi Kawashima
RR: Please tell us a bit about yourself.
KK: I was born and raised in Bowling Green, Ohio. My mom is Korean and my dad’s Japanese. They moved to the States in the 60s and my dad taught history at BGSU. I graduated from Oberlin Conservatory and am
completing my doctorate at Rice University (thesis left…very difficult with 18-month-old twin boys!). I moved to Salt Lake City in September 2003 when my then boyfriend, Jason Hardink, won the keyboard position at Utah Symphony. He proposed on Sunset peak, and we were hitched a year later up in Millcreek Canyon. We love living in Salt Lake. Apart from the
beauty of the state, the musical life here is so vibrant – I’ve been fortunate to get to work with a lot of amazing musicians and administrators. I’ve worked for the Gina Bachauer International Piano Foundation, played for Canyonlands New Music Ensemble, subbed occasionally with the symphony and played for NOVA and Intermezzo Chamber Music Series. I currently am adjunct faculty at Westminster College, where I teach piano and next semester will be teaching an intro to world music.
RR: Could you tell us about this piece by John Cage? What drew you to this particular work? Why is it such an important part of the repertoire for piano?
KK: When I was a freshman in college, I first heard the Cage in a survey of modern music history course. It absolutely changed me. I had never heard anything so beautiful, and funky, and moving. The Sonatas and Interludes is the magnum opus of the prepared piano repertoire. Cage was working as an accompanist for dance classes at the Cornish School in Seattle in 1938. At this time in his career, he was writing a lot of percussion
pieces, and when he was asked to write something for choreographer Sylvia Fort, he was confronted with limited space and money for a percussion ensemble. There is a story that some objects accidentally fell inside the piano, and Cage instantly heard the solution to his percussion problem: he invented a virtual gamelan ensemble within the hands of one pianist. I think that’s what is so dynamic about this piece: it is a remarkable
transformation of the instrument — and I believe an enhancement of the sonic possibilities of the piano.
When you look at the history of the piano, you realize that composers
have been constantly pushing the limits and boundaries of the instrument.
From its origins as a fortepiano, composers such as Mozart and Haydn have
tested the dynamic and coloristic ranges of the instrument. You certainly
hear this culminating in Beethoven’s music, with the registral extremes and dynamic contrasts. It is interesting to note, there were ‘preparations’ available in many fortepianos as well, from janissary pedals (bells) to bassoon stops (a bar covered with paper inside the piano, both activated by pedal).Cage was only continuing this tradition
of expanding the timbral possibilities of the piano.
RR: The music begins at 7:30, but at 6:30 you’ll execute the preparation of the piano and allow interested concertgoers to observe. What can the audience expect if they arrive early? What kinds of objects will be added to the piano? How does that work? How do the preparations change the sound of the instrument?
KK: The table of preparations that Cage includes in the score calls for the following objects to be inserted inside specific strings: various bolts, screws, nuts, pieces of rubber and pieces of plastic. I have consulted with several piano technicians and other pianists who perform this work, and have learned a lot about the correct way to insert the objects
without incurring any damage. I would like to also demonstrate how there are decisions that a performer can make about the placement and choice of preparations to change the sound. One of the remarkable things about the Sonatas and Interludes is the fact that Cage does not prepare all 88 keys. He calls for a little less than that, which means there are many notes unprepared. When you hear those “regular” notes, they are heard in
amazing relief above the variety of non-pianistic sounds. The result is an incredible variety of colors and noises – some rattle, some are muted, some glitter like bells, some really sound like a little collection of drums.
RR: Does this piece present any unusual challenges for the performer?
KK: The piece in its entirety is almost an hour long, consisting of 16 sonatas and four interludes. As a performer, it’s a challenge to create a coherent arc that conveys the various moods or rasa that are integral to this work. The writings of art historian Ananda Coomarswamy had a profound effect on Cage in particular – this Hindu concept of rasa, or aesthetic motion. There are nine permanent rasa or aesthetic emotions:
they are the Erotic, Heroic, Odious, Furious, Terrible, Pathetic, Wondrous, Peaceful, and all work to reach the last, Tranquility. When one hears the entire Sonatas and Interludes, one can certainly hear how Cage personified this emotional journey.
RR: How is playing a prepared piano different than playing an unprepared piano?
KK: There is actually no physical difference. The keys under the fingers are unchanged; it doesn’t involve any extended techniques (playing inside the instrument). But when you are reading the score, the sounds coming out are not always what you expect! It certainly changes your perception of being a pianist.
RR: John Cage is certainly one of the most famous (or infamous, depending on one’s point of view) composers of the 20th century. It’s now been 20 years since his death. What is your opinion regarding the current state of his legacy as a composer and innovator? How do these works for prepared piano fit into that legacy?
KK: That’s a great question. I think Cage opened the doors for a composer to embrace the idea of free thinking and collaboration. Whether you only appreciate part of the vast output of Cage’s compositional career, I have met few composers, and certainly visual artists, who have argued that Cage did not have a prophetic outlook of beauty and the
possibilities of sound. He challenged us all to listen and perceive in new ways. He was certainly ahead of his time, with the invention of the prepared piano, to his infamous silent piece, 4’33”, to his experiments in indeterminacy. It took great courage to write and create many of those works. I am so grateful for John Cage!
As far as the prepared piano legacy, the Sonatas and Interludes is peerless. Unfortunately, as far as I know, no other major work has been written for this preparation. I would love to commission several composers to write for it. Though pianists today are still mostly playing music of the past few centuries, it is not as controversial to hear musicinvolving the insides of the piano. We need to certainly credit Cage for this acceptance of new sounds.
RR: Who will this music appeal to? Do you think that this is a work
that everyone can appreciate?
KK: I do believe anyone can appreciate this music. I think anyone who has an
appreciation for and interest in World Music (who doesn’t these days?) – especially music such as Balinese gamelan or perhaps Japanese Gagaku – would find this piece totally fascinating. The rhythmic and formal structures are very clear. In my experience, I’ve found that people who are even perhaps apprehensive or intimidated by classical
music, find this music very welcoming, and are surprised and moved at the array of funky rhythms, meditative grooves and unusual colors.
RR: What other projects do you have planned for the future?
KK: Jason and I will be playing a four-hands concert in May for the Chamber Music Society of Salt Lake. There is an Intermezzo concert in the works for this summer, and I’ll be playing a solo piano concert in Houston in the fall. And of course, trying to keep up with the twins and do some hiking with family.
CONCERT INFO:
- What: Kimi Kawashima, piano
- Venue: Vieve Gore Concert Hall, Westminster College
- Time and Date: 7:30 p.m., March 26
- Tickets: $15 general, students free with ID
- Phone: 801-832-2457
- Web: www.westminstercollege.edu/cultural_events/