Pantomimes

Pantomimes , for piano four hands and stereo electronics, is conceived as a dream, a wandering, an initiatory journey unfolding between the moment a child goes to sleep and the moment they wake up. These nocturnal dreams, populated by diverse, fantastical, grotesque, and poetic characters, constantly evolve, leading the child through lands that are sometimes wondrous, sometimes frightening, and through states ranging from calm to passion, from joy to fear. Then, when the dance becomes a frenzy, comes the moment to return to reality.

The work is presented as a series of tableaux conceived according to a pedagogical progression, accessible from the end of the first cycle of piano (approximately the fourth year according to usual conservatory standards) up to pre-professional levels:

Pantomime is not merely a musical evocation; it is also perceptible in the staging and the performance styles demanded of the musicians, since each scene requires one or both of them to use the instrument in unconventional ways (other than playing on the keyboard). Thus transformed into puppets, the pianists inhabit a sonic material that is both entirely dedicated to the piano (without preparation or other artifice), creating a universe that is then taken up and developed by the electronic part with which they interact.

All the necessary electronic files are available for download from our website www.edu.billaudot.com (versions with click for practice, in multiple speeds, in quadraphonic sound for a concert, player, etc.). These files must be activated precisely when the corresponding symbol appears in the score.

Pantomimes is dedicated to Françoise Thinat and Rosa Park.

Commande du fonds de dotation Galaxie-Y avec le soutien de Francis et Mica Salabert

Création le 30 janvier 2024, au Ilshin Hall à Séoul (Corée du Sud), par Eunji Han et Hyunjeong Kim.