​Greta Oto for Alto Saxophone (or Bb Clarinet) and Piano (2026)

• Premiere: July 25, 2026, Rohm Music Foundation Scholarship Concert 2026 "Journey" Kyoto Performance

Alto Saxophone: Kenta Igarashi; Piano: Yuki Amako; Performance time: Approximately 12 minutes

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

<Program Notes>

Greta Oto is a species of butterfly found in Central and South America, also known as the "glass-winged butterfly" because most of its wings are transparent. It is believed that these transparent wings evolved to blend into the surrounding scenery and evade predators, a unique survival strategy acquired only in the tropical environment with its lush, colorful vegetation.

I was strongly drawn not only to the beauty of this butterfly, but also to the audacity of its idea of making its body transparent, in contrast to many creatures that protect themselves by camouflaging themselves against their surroundings. Being transparent is not simply about becoming invisible; it also means blurring the boundaries between oneself and one's surroundings, and existing as part of the environment.

In this work, I attempted to depict the life of Greta Oth using the concept of "transparency" as a central theme, employing the delicate soft tones of the alto saxophone and piano, rapid passages, and harmonic shifts. In the first half, the alto saxophone and piano maintain a relationship like that of a butterfly and plants, progressing with a sense of tension between them. However, as the piece progresses, they gradually lose their boundaries while sharing rapid passages, merging into a single sonic space where it is unclear which is the foreground and which is the background. This is also a musical translation of the process by which a butterfly blends into the landscape, making its own existence "transparent."