Darleen Mitchell

solo piano

Composer's Note:

Music for the Little Prince is a suite of eight short pieces suggested by events from Antoine de St. Exupery's book The Little Prince. There are very few barlines or time signatures. The set explores various types of notation practices that involve different degrees of indeterminacy and improvisation.

I had recently acquired my third copy of The Little Prince, planning to read it to my first grandchild Madeleine. I hoped that my piano pieces would capture some of the spirit of the Little Prince, from his tiny planet, Asteroid B-612, where with moving his chair a short distance, he could experience another sunset, and where his carefully tended rose captivated his heart. he journeys to other planets where he encounters the geographer, who is so busy with "matters of consequence' to even see the things that only children see. I dedicated the suite to Madeleine, who was helping us to see things as a child again.