My Four lyrical pieces were written in 1970 when I was still studying composition and piano at the Royal Academy of Music in London. They were first performed in a student concert there by Jonathan Williams and myself in March 1970. We also played them at the Aldeburgh Festival in June the same year. At the time, I was a student of either Harrison Birtwistle or Alan Bush; I cannot remember exactly when I moved from one to the other. In any case, there is little sign of the influence of either. I was (and still am) a great admirer of Birtwistle's opera Punch and Judy, but was probably too young or stupid (or both)  to understand what he was trying to achieve.

In essence the pieces make up a short four-movement sonata (the sort of piece which used to be called a sonatina, until Boulez wrote his massive Sonatine for flute). The pieces correspond to the four movements of a traditional sonata - the first a brooding Tempo rubato, espressivo, the second a short and snappy Scherzando which leads by way of a sustained high harmonic on the cello to a dreamy and introspective Molto lento. The last piece, Vivace, is a flashy, slightly Russian-sounding finale with a slow, reflective passage just before the end, and a final dramatic flourish rounds things off.

The Four lyrical pieces were recorded by Robert Irvine and Fali Pavri in 2007 for Delphian Records, and issued as a CD on DCD 34073

Giles Swayne
2025