Created in 1988, this orchestral work is a harmonically and timbrally lush evocation that often evokes the breadth of a tone painting by Debussy and the crystalline delicacy of Webern, an outpouring of "pastel coloring ... reminders of the transient nature of twilight, before the coming night and after the sunset" (Takemitsu). It is dedicated to "the memory of my dear friend Morton Feldman".

Takemitsu described the work's sub-structure as developed "through strictly measured musical units, through what might be called musical principles before a melody is constituted or before a rhythm is formed". This is a very apt analog of Morton Feldman's own compositional procedures in both his early works (for example, where pitches are left indeterminate, but the numerical density of events is fixed) and later works (where small and larger rhythmic phrases are continually varied and re-combined; a wonderful example is Feldman's profound opera "Neither" ). The small and broader cyclicism of the rhythm patterns in Takemitsu's work is, however, more hidden than in Feldman's pieces - a kind of phased, elastic, non-clockwork repetition with imaginative variations.

The brilliant orchestration contains many unique details, some of which are difficult to hear in a recording but which greatly enrich the acoustic texture. New instrumental combinations abound - for example, harps in unison with French horns, or a surprising, delicately interruptive chord constituted of antique cymbal, bass drum, piano in its extreme ranges, viola harmonics and double bass. The emotional texture breathes with large sonorities, is pleasantly awakened by unusual and unexpected timbres, and is confirmed in a human warmness and quiet confidence (especially by the concluding chordal sequence).



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