Serynade (1997/1998) by Helmut Lachenmann is the piece that has most strongly influenced my development as a contemporary pianist. I know this is a pretty definitive statement to make, but in all the times I have prepared and performed the work, I am always struck by its physical and emotional demands.
When I studied with the British pianist-musicologist Ian Pace, he stated that everything one could learn about contemporary piano playing is in Lachenmann's Serynade (this is also very much a definitive statement). Serynade is demanding in its detail. Players must balance foreground and background elements over three staves of music and coordinate the interplay of all three piano pedals. It is also demanding in its scope: thirty minutes of music stretched across micro and macro structures. The gamut of emotions range from anticipation to humour to violence to relief. The work also takes the performer and listener on a journey from these earthly human feelings to the larger physical forces of the cosmos.
Over the past eleven years, I have performed Serynade five times. I am amazed at new relationships and sounds I uncover with each preparation and performance. New aspects of my playing and myself are also revealed to me in the process. This balance of openness and discernment have shaped my work and values as a contemporary musician. Lachenmann has taught me how to become a better listener.
