Alone, Speak wasn't commissioned or requested by anyone; it was more of an exploration, a playful experimentation with electric guitar, and having fun with Dan and his e-bow, although everything was precisely notated in the score.
As I try to recall the source of this piece, I think to myself, ”When did we record this piece? My audio file indicates 2012, but if you're saying it was recorded in that room (which was our mutual friend’s living room), then it couldn't have been after 2009…" I had to have this conversation with Daniel Lippel, for whom this piece was written, in 2024.
I delightfully remember that it was originally composed as an introductory movement for my electric guitar concerto, "Abandoned Time." That's why the piece concludes with the opening chord of "Abandoned Time.”
As I reminisce on the past, I’ll conclude this program note with a nice sentence from Dan during our recent conversation about this. Gleefully, he said, “Those were fun days!”
Indeed, and we're still having fun now, 15 years later. I am grateful.
Dai Fujikura (edited by Joseph Ehrenpreis)