Individuation and Enlightenment

consisting of

Rosarium Philosophorum
for clavichord
and

Oxherding Pictures
for prepared piano

Individuation and Enlightenment is a single set of ten short pieces which should be played complete and in order. However, in an
ideal performance it should be played on both clavichord (in which form it is known as Rosarium Philosophorum) and prepared
piano (in which form it is known as Oxherding Pictures). Either version may be played first, and it may be found suitable (especially
on a recording) to interweave one version with the other (in which case the prepared piano set should be played starting somewhere in
the middle of the cycle - giving, for example, the following sequence: 1 5 2 6 3 7 4 8 5 9 6 10 7 1 8 2 9 3 10 4).

The two series were inspired by the Japanese Jungian psychotherapist Hayao Kawai’s comparison of two well-known series of
drawings, one European, one Japanese. The Japanese series is the Zen Ten Oxherding Pictures which show, stage by stage, man
discovering his Self, and ideally, attaining Enlightenment. The European series is taken from Rosarium Philosophorum, an
alchemical text whose first ten pictures (there are 20 in all) Jung himself had read as an allegory for a similar process, in Western
terms - to use his terms, for Individuation. Understanding and transcending the Ego so that it is no longer an obstruction to higher
things - this is the purpose of both series, Eastern and Western.

Kawai points out that there are many differences between the cycles, of course, but also many interesting points of similarity. One of
the differences I found most interesting was that, in principle, it is possible to start the Japanese series at any point, and that it can
continue going round, from 10 to 1, indefinitely (i.e. it is circular). That is certainly not the case with the European series, which
progresses from 1-10 (1-20 in the entire series) with no possible return. Among the many similarities between the series is the
‘nothingness’ of the eighth picture in each - an emptiness which is also heard in my pieces: unavoidably, this number is tacet, but this
is not intended to be shocking, nor is it a deliberate reference to John Cage (whose influence is nevertheless behind the pieces). As the
extremely brief pieces must be performed as a cycle, the equally brief silent number 8 should be felt merely as a pause in the music

Performance Notes:
General - no tempi or dynamics are marked in the scores, as both factors need to be approached flexibly, given the two instruments
involved. However, in general all tempi are extremely slow; dynamics should be guided by such standard factors as gesture, register,
density etc.

When extra vibrancy or penetration is required I have notated a pedal part (for the prepared piano) and indicated a vibrato (bebung)
for the clavichord; as only one indication will apply at a time, these are colour-coded in the score to avoid confusion. The performer is
free to add more pedal/vibrato (using discretion, especially in the case of the latter) but it would be best to bear in mind that where one
is used the other should also be used in the reciprocal performance.

The duration of the silent number 8 is not fixed and should be intuited by the performer, who should bear in mind the durations of the
other pieces of the cycle (in other words - it should be short). It is important to realise that number 8 is part of the continuum of music
- it is not to be artfully articulated as a privileged ‘silent piece.’

Clavichord - ornamentation is to be approached in the sprit of the Baroque or the Empfindsamer Stil.

Prepared piano - ornamentation is to be approached in the spirit of the classical repertoire of the Japanese shakuhachi.

As all the pieces are strictly limited to fixed modes, the piano’s preparation runs along pitch class lines - that is, it is important that all
members of a particular pitch class share some similarities of timbre and are heard as belonging together. Because an element of
precision is required for which it is impossible to give a definite set of instructions suiting all instruments, preparation is left to the
performer. However, it is worth noting that the modal nature of the pieces means that they tend to have tonal centres - G, D, B, G, C,
G, E, C# and D; it is advisable to prioritise these and other prominent pitches for this reason. Number 7 only uses four pitch classes (E,
F, A and B) and so these need particular attention. The music uses all chromatic degrees in the two octaves above and below middle C.