The "Daily Exercise for Horn" series is part of a broader initiative to create character pieces for wind instruments and piano, drawing inspiration from the Romantic era's rich tradition of expressive and distinctive short compositions for piano. This era gave us treasures such as Chopin's "Nocturnes," Schumann's "Scenes from Childhood," and Mendelssohn's "Songs Without Words," known for their depth of emotion and narrative conveyed within concise musical forms.
"Daily Exercise for Horn" diverges from the flamboyant, technically demanding repertoire often showcased in solo contests, instead offering shorter pieces that combine memorable harmonies and melodies. These compositions are designed to be engaging and accessible, the kind of music that horn players might feel compelled to play spontaneously, embodying the essence of character pieces: expressiveness, accessibility, and deep satisfaction in performance.
Envisioned as perfect encore pieces, these compositions aim to provide a gentle yet uplifting conclusion to a concert filled with challenging and renowned works, eliciting warm applause from the audience once more.
"Daily Exercise for Horn" seeks to enrich the horn repertoire with pieces that are enjoyable to play and explore, emphasizing the horn's unique capacity for expressive nuance and tonal variety. The series encourages horn players to showcase the expressive potential of their instrument in a variety of musical contexts, balancing technical skill with musicality.
(Tsutomu Tajima)
