Where the Border between East and West Disappears

The sound of the koto – the Japanese zither – melding with the sound of a recorder also blurs the border between East and West. 50 years ago, such a sound might have been considered exotic – but now we can listen to such conglomerations of sounds without any sense of alienation. Diversity has become omnipresent in our daily lives: today we eat sushi, tomorrow we go for a kebab, and the day after we have a currywurst. The Koto is now frequently heard as part of ensembles, and as a solo instrument. I am immensely pleased when my duo piece “Only My Voice Remains” for koto and recorder is part of a repertoire.