KHYAL, for Flute and Piano（1985）

Khyāl is the name of a genre of melodic songs from northern India. Most such songs are love songs and are sung by women who provide the melodies with extensive ornamentation. This style of singing provided me with hints for this duo work. The flute begins to sing out its melody in the low register accompanied by fluctuations in the sound to a backdrop provided by a drone on the piano. The mode used in the piece occupies an intermediate position between major and minor scales, with major and minor thirds above the tonic making frequent appearances in the form of trills. Microtonal variation between these two intervals is also used for trilling purposes. My aim was to create a sensual sound world. The melody gradually ascends in pitch over approximately ten minutes until it arrives finally on a high C sharp. The piece is intended to be an ecstatic love song.