When I first came in contact with a piano in my childhood, I was mesmerized by the instrument. Not knowing anything about musical scales or the significance of the black and white keys, I was intrigued by the consonant and dissonant intervals I kept discovering at random. The combinations seemed endless and anything was possible.

Now, decades later, as an experienced composer, I don’t want to lose sight of that wonder and curiosity of exploration. In my recent compositions I have begun to rely more on improvisation and abstract splashes of ideas layered on top of one another in search of startling sonorities. I feel more at ease giving freedom to the music that reveals itself to me this way instead of conforming it into a preplanned shape.

Such was the composition process of the Piano Quintet, a fun and joyful piece, reminding us that in this cynical and artificial world, we must take time to be carefree and playful.