Sonatina politonal

This work for piano presents three clearly contrasted, yet also unified moments. Their common element, polytonality, is ever present and shaped into each of the scores and changing keys. The range of juxtaposition within the sound palette is thus its predominant dynamic element. The form responds to the strict canon « sonata form», especially in its first movement, where it presents the sections in shorter discourses – hence the title Sonatina. The second movement introduces a delicate atmosphere, with sweet cantilenas. The third movement closes with an effervescent dance imbued by a quasi-obstinate amalgam rhythm. The piece aims at the familiarisation with the constant atmospheres in the writing and the expression of the polytonal world; thus, the acquisition of the reflections and a proper assimilation in this field. The composition has also got a didactic end. Even though the difficulty in the above described aspects may seem obvious, there is in fact less to it than meets the eye. It is basically a matter of the performer’s familiarisation with the polytonal atmosphere that is felt, as a leading thread, throughout the piece.
Antoni Besses