インスタレーション作品 「プリペアード・ピアノ　―彼はいつも半分闇の中にいる―」に寄せて
（ジョン・ケージとボリス・ニーズルーニィへの敬意を込めて）

The sound is like gamelan. It is like water harp or bubinga. And it is piano.

In the autumn of 1935, a ballet performance was scheduled at a theater, where the orchestra pit was not big enough for percussion orchestra. John Cage composed the music for the performance. In order to overcome the situation, he slipped objects of varied materials between the strings inside the piano.
This was the prepared piano that made one piano player to be a full percussion orchestra. The sound varied by the size and the position of the materials.

In the early 18th century, Clavicembalo col piano forte (a cembalo that brought out forte and mute.) was invented in Italy. The name 'piano' was derived from this instrument. In the latter half of the century, England already saw the forerun of the modern piano. After many improvements and modifications, a complete form of piano was achieved around mid 19th century. In the time of Mozart, piano had only 60 keys and no foot pedal. The frame material changed from wood to steel. The strings made of brass were replaced with music wires made of steel. Industrial production dominated the world after craftsmen's era. In the time of Chopin and Liszt, piano had 82 keys and had wider range of tones for a while. Piano now ends up with 88 keys. That is how piano has evolved.

How was it to be perceived, an evolution, degeneration or sacrilege, when John Cage slipped objects to make lower and irregular sound inside a piano resulting in the achievement of wider range of keys and beautiful tunes after many improvements?
There must be different opinions about that. I figure that John Cage's prepared piano broadens the definition of what a piano is, or that it is a newly metamorphosed form of a finished object after some alterations were worked over.

Along with this interesting situation, it is said that John Cage's music has some oriental background. It is natural for oriental people to listen to his music with their body and soul.

The fact that John Cage had studied music under Schonberg for a short time, who was father of atonal music, makes me think about the relationship with my beloved Anton Webern, another Schonberg's student, Kandinski under whom he studied painting, and Dr. Faust written by Thomas Mann. It is really about something that concerns me. (Kandinski painted a scene of Schonberg's first play with his affection, which had to be finished due to booing and stepping from the audience, is exhibited at Lenbachhaus in Munich.)

In any field, when a good artist creates something from the point where western and eastern ideas meet, there would be no boundaries whether it is east or west for the audience any more. In music, that would be true to the players.

Music is fun. Japanese word for music, 'ongaku' is about 'enjoy sound'.

The black-spotted pond frog hang in the center of my installation was given by Boris Nieslony who is a great German artist. He keeps hiding half of his body in a black sock. He keeps looking at the world with his body half out of the darkness of the sock. He is not a frog, but a human being. (That is what I think.)

To express multitiered phenomenon that is enlarged and condensed at the same time by adding a different factor to one thing….it is my prime joy if this experiment of my work could find a contact point with people and let me share the idea together.

Etsuko Fuzuki March, 2006