Morton Feldman - Palais de Mari (1986)

The Palais de Mari is American composer Morton Feldman’s last solo piano composition, written in 1986. The piece was commissioned by Feldman’s close friend Bunita Marcus and dedicated to the painter Francesco Clemente. Marcus performed the Palais de Mari for its premiere at Clemente’s New York residence.

The piece is named for the ruins of a forgotten Mesopotamian royal palace, of which a photograph is situated in the Louvre Museum. That photograph inspired Feldman to conceive this work. A work in which 40 centuries peer down upon the listener.

The entire piece is very much subdued and lasts only 20-25 minutes, which, relatively speaking, is a rather short duration for Feldman. In the beginning, an iconic four note motif fades into being and decays like a specter. The motif materializes and vanishes a few more times, with slight variation in the rhythm, order, and register. Each tone, each chord, each entity is carefully considered by the player. Each idea is not simply developed or repeated, but intermittently exists and persists. This conjures an entire new world separate from the real world, creating a timeless dimension that can be difficult to perceive in a linear fashion.

Date: 1986
Dedicatee: Francesco Clemente
Performer: Aleck Karis on piano

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