After receiving a four-year commission from Yamaha Symphonic Band, I composed "Fluttering Maple Leaves (Fuyo no Mai)" as the fourth piece, following "Nami no Ho", "Souten no Shizuku", and "Suifu no Hikari" (La saison lumineuse du vent vert).

The title of this piece was chosen from public submissions at its premiere. These four works were composed by weaving together impressions of the four seasons in order, starting from winter. As such, this piece represents autumn, but it isn't solely a depiction of autumn, and there are elements that might seem somewhat out of place for the season.

Nevertheless, before I began working on this piece, I heard that one of the band members had to leave the group due to personal circumstances. Their sentiment at that time, along with my own feelings of graduation in this fourth year and the bittersweet farewells to those with whom I had formed close relationships during this brief period, seem to have cast a shadow over the piece. In that sense, perhaps it can be said that this aspect is indeed autumnal.

2003 Commissioned Work by Yamaha Symphonic Band

(Jun Nagao)