Toccata sequenziale sopra "ut re mi fa", Opus 1063

From the composer: The formal inspiration for "Toccata sequenziale sopra 'ut re mi fa'" came from early Italian keyboard toccatas (those of Frescobaldi are probably the most famous today, though there are certainly many others). However, as with many of my pieces written in the last few years, the early influences do not come exclusively from a single source. The toccatas of Hassler, the ricercari of Steigleder, the fantasias of Cornet and Kerckhoven, the fugues of Couperin, and anonymous late medieval keyboard music all are thrown into the mix, and blended with a contemporary use of mixed modality. The title refers to the fact that the piece employs sequential chord progressions in numerous places, and that the basic source material is the first four notes of the scale (C–D–E–F), though often inflected into different modes. The opening section begins with free figuration in the right hand over pedal points in the left hand of the four notes in turn. Four sections follow: each centered on one of the four source pitches. A final coda returns to C.