Seiji Endo: Piano Pieces Collection

Nov 30, 2024

Piano Pieces Collection is a 2021 album from pianist and composer Seiji Endo. For this album, Endo plays 19 solo piano pieces, a similar concept to some previous albums such as his Genji Monogatari Volume 1 (2018), which evoked the drama of that classic early Japanese literature through depth and shading. On Piano Pieces Collection, Endo’s message is simpler and direct, uplifting and motivational.

At first glance, another comparison could be made to the great Chick Corea’s Children’s Songs album. Each album has 19 to 20 tracks, all short solo piano pieces. Also, both albums showcase the respective pianist’s sketches of minimal, memorable, melodic music. Beauty through simplicity. Corea’s compositions might edge towards more complex and rhythmically stimulating music, and similarly, Endo’s pieces also carry his own personality. His compositions are delicate, graceful, and subtle. More miniature than minimal, Endo aims to create moods of gentle understanding and welcoming calmness.

Considering the cover of Piano Pieces Collection, perhaps the intended mood is one of alone time, dressed up with nowhere to go. Or, dressed up and somewhere, but that somewhere fades away as the music in the headphones takes the woman worlds away, elegant and relaxed and gazing into the distance. The calming blue-green of the package design also surfaces in three song titles: #1 “Blue Lighting”, #13 “Azure Dragon”, and #14 “Sky Blue of the Mind”.

Like a sketchbook of vignettes that continue from page to page, the impressions conjured by the songs flow into one another. A first listen may absorb a bed of background music that is soft and relaxing. Repeated listening reveals the magic of the songs and uncovers highlights as the strong melodies tickle the ears and stay in the mind. It can be beautifully touching.

Endo’s rubato touch and timing heighten the mood with dramatic pauses and volume changes, though slight in moderation. The sense of wanting to touch and comfort the listeners through music rises above all else. It’s piano music where the romantic style is not exaggerated but played gracefully as the piano becomes the medium (and Endo the vessel) for the composer’s message that can be mellow, introspective, or encouraging, but always engaging.

This hour-long collection of miniatures consists of songs that mostly fall between two to four minutes in length, with the longest track #17 “Hope” reaching four and a half minutes. Most songs are in standard 4/4 or 3/4 time, with one in 5/4. Most songs float along as pretty piano pieces with a softly implied beat. A few pulse with an implied light rock backbeat, including #4 “Think of You”, #7 “Itosugi”, #13 “Mirai kara no Kaze wo Ukete”, and #17 “Hope”.

Most of the tracks on this album are given Japanese titles. Roughly translating the set to English also gives insights into the poetic images Endo paints through the black and white keys. Themes of natural imagery, emotions, and personal reflections give rise to positive feelings of hope and thanks given.