🇯🇵Toru Takemitsu ： Autumn Leaves

This transcription is Takemitsu’s reimagining for solo piano of the song by Joseph Kosma. Rather than placing the familiar melody directly in the foreground, it allows it to emerge through spacious note placement and subtle harmonic shifts. The piece unfolds through a succession of passages that trace the melody and others that invite the listener to savor changing sonorities, maintaining a quiet yet gently tense atmosphere. In performance, the sparse texture should feel purposeful, with careful attention given to the onset and resonance of each note. Balancing the distance between melody and accompaniment, the resonance created by the pedal, and the length of each pause is essential to bringing out its transparency and shading.