Souvenir de fleurs de Pervenche
Yuko Uebayashi: Souvenir de fleurs de Pervenche for flute and piano was written in 2023, and premiered on 15 April 2023 by flutist Michel Moragues and pianist Yu Matsuoka during a memorial concert for Thierry Sage at a musical salon “La Mélodieuse”, created by Yuko Uebayashi in Puget, France.
"A new piece for flute and piano was born from the memories of a radiant summer. A new piece for flute and piano was born from the memories of a radiant summer. I began composing the first movement at the end of the summer, inspired by the gentle nostalgia of that beautiful season when we shared such wonderful music together. The second movement is a calm and silent prayer — a meditation for the world, far from nostalgia.
The third movement — its climax — and the final coda.
Today, our world faces many hardships, sorrows, and pains.
I conceived the climax with the image of a bird leaving its nest, facing a fierce headwind, spreading its wings with all its strength and courage, and continuing to fly.
I wrote it with the wish that everyone might live as bravely and resiliently as that bird.
Composing this climax was also a personal struggle — a dialogue with my own fragility. Within it, I placed a wish for all of us, and for myself, not to give in to trials.
Originally, the coda was to close the piece simply by embracing the memories of summer.
But as I felt the weight of the world’s suffering and the pain of losing loved ones, the music inevitably returned to sorrow.
Yet, I turned my face toward the light and chose to end the piece with a glimmer of hope — the light of hope itself.
I wish to remain close to our shared grief, hand in hand, walking together toward hope, and living with strength.
Thierry, the son of our former mayor, Alain Sage of Puget village, passed away on January 17, 2023, at the age of fifty, after a six-year battle with ALS (Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis).
On April 15, we held a memorial concert for Thierry at La Mélodieuse.
During this concert, Les Souvenir de Pervenche received its world premiere, performed by flutist Michel Moragues and pianist Yu Matsuoka, both of whom are dear friends of mine."
Yuko Uébayashi
Mami Ueda (flute), Yu Matsuoka (piano), live performance, 12 December, 2024, from the Salle Cortot in Paris.
Souvenir de fleurs de Pervenche
Yu Matsuoka (piano), live performance, 15 April, 2023, at a musical salon “La Mélodieuse”, (from 2:20)
Souvenir de fleurs de Pervenche
Uébayashi Yuko
Yuko Uébayashi (1958) is a contemporary Japanese composer known for her deeply expressive, lyrical music that beautifully merges elements of French Impressionism with the subtle nuances of traditional Japanese music and the evocative power of film scores.
Born in Kitakyushu, Japan, Uébayashi began composing at a young age. Her first composition was a song inspired by a book about a disobedient dog and was performed on piano by herself in a party for her elementary class. This was the pivotal point where her talent in composition was first recognized.
Yuko Uebayashi’s formal music training started when she was accepted to Kyoto City University of Arts, where she majored in composition and studied with Ryohei Hirose and Komei Abe.
Uébayashi moved to Paris in 1998, a city that profoundly influenced her compositional style. The city’s vibrant artistic environment allowed her to refine a musical language that is often compared to the elegance of Debussy and Ravel. She only writes music for musicians with whom she feels a strong personal and artistic connection.
Uébayashi moved to Paris in 1998, a city that profoundly influenced her compositional style. The city’s vibrant artistic environment allowed her to refine a musical language that is often compared to the elegance of Debussy and Ravel. She only writes music for musicians with whom she feels a strong personal and artistic connection.
She is particularly known for her extensive output of flute music, including a full Sonata for Flute and Piano (2003) and numerous other chamber works.