THREE

Perhaps this work, which was commissioned by the Australian group Ensemble Three, is the happiest composition I have ever written.

I spent time in Australia with my family when I was 6 years old. I went there from Japan where we then lived.

My memory of that trip to Australia is extremely happy: Christmas Day on the beach, the gorgeous blue sea, the sandy beach. The sands I remember I could not hold, as each grain of sand was so small and so smooth, it escaped from between my fingers. The heat, going to the zoo, hugging koala bears (at the time we could hug the koalas), feeding kangaroos.

I was a small kid, but I remember it vividly. I had not returned to Australia since, until the premiere of this work. While composing this work (before the premiere, obviously), I was in my small, cold London apartment with the forever grey sky, spending long hours on the video-chatting with the guitarist of the ensemble who were in Melbourne, experimenting with the pedal of the electric guitar.

This piece is based on the memory of my 6 year old self. My happy time in Australia.

Dai Fujikura (edited by Alison Phillips)