LHOTSE for Marimba（2022）

I composed this piece under the inspiration of the marimba player Reina Iwami. The strong，incisive sounds that she generates on her instrument seem to rise up vertically into the skies.
It was this impression that suggested the title I gave to this piece，Lhotse being a mountain in the Himalayas well known for its almost vertical rock face.
The piece consists of eight short movements played without a break.

1. This movement begins with the tonal centre on C and features furious upward and downward passages. The music develops with an increasing focus on the key pitches F，G and B flat.

2. This is a transitional section into the third movement and is in strong contrast to the first movement.

3. This movement develops on the basis of rhythmical repetition interspersed between rests with fortissimo discords and pianissimo harmonies. Except in one place，the first beat of every bar begins with a rest.

4. The focus in this movement is on melody and changes in tempo，dynamics and textural density. The music develops with sounds sweeping forward like waves.

5. Here the music alternates between four-note arpeggios and rests，with the timing being entrusted entirely to the performer.

6. A movement centring on monody coloured with the occasional harmony. Following on from the fifth movement，it also incorporates frequent breaks and further changes in tempo.

7. The music here alternates between fortissimo discords and pianissimo passages. The overall sound is generated by concordant intervals making an occasional appearance within the aftertone of the discordant intervals.

8. In this final movement the music features alternation between fast passages and fortissimo fifths. The movement is dominated by the concordant intervals that had previously appeared in a pianissimo dynamic but which here appear fortissimo.