Performance: Tsukushi Mitsuda, piano
Listen to the rest of the piano ‘sweet’ here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qkdfdQKZdPg&list=PLrZyJ4_cH0kQojb570ep_PcG5tdmYsu5o
About Confections: A Piano Sweet
Confections is a suite of twenty-six works for solo piano written by Akira Yuyama in 1974, including twenty pieces named after various sweets, three intermezzi (illustrating effects of overconsumption of sweets), and a finale march containing fragments of each movement. Baumkuchen is a traditional German cake (translating to “tree cake” due to its shape) that is also a popular treat in Japan. The Confections suite is mostly meant for study and performance by young musicians, and it is likely Yuyama’s most creative and well-renowned work. Despite being one of the few pieces of classical music solely dedicated to food, Confections has remained a best-seller in Japan since its publication, especially for young piano students.
About Akira Yuyama:
“Akira Yuyama was born in 1932. He graduated from the Department of Composition in the Music Faculty of Tokyo University of the Arts. When he was a student, he was given an award at the 22nd Music Competition of Japan in 1953, and the following year, he received the second prize at the same competition. Afterward, he won numerous awards for composing in Japan. In 2003, he was given the Order of the Rising Sun, Gold Rays with Rosette by the Emperor for his long-standing achievements. In 2012, a special concert of Yuyama’s choral works was held at the Golden Hall of the Viennese Music Association.”
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