Anatomy of Light (Op.1)

Op.1 – ANATOMY OF LIGHT (2024) – ca. 4′10′′
Written for the centennial concert series “Puccini nel 100° della morte” – Brescia, Novara, Riva del Garda

Instrumentation: WOODWIND & PIANO DUET

Op.1a: ALTO SAXOPHONE (in Eb) & PIANO
Op.1b: CLARINET (in Bb) & PIANO

Premiere (Op.1a): 11 May 2024, Bazzini Hall, “L. Marenzio” Conservatory, Brescia; Francesca Fantini (alto saxophone), Alessandro Zanotti (piano)

Recordings (Op.1a):
– live recording, 14 May 2024, "F.lli Olivieri" auditorium, “G. Cantelli” Conservatory, Novara; Francesca Fantini (asax), Alessandro Zanotti (pf)
– live recording, 18 May 2024, “F. Bonporti” Conservatory auditorium, Riva del Garda; Francesca Fantini (asax), Alessandro Zanotti (pf)

Publications:
– Casaccia, Alexandre. Anatomy of Light. Score. In Trame pucciniane. Studi, documenti e ricerche artistiche, edited by Giovanni Botta and Federico Fornoni, 161–166. Quaderni del Cantelli, vol. 1. Varese: Zecchini Editore, September 2025. ISBN: 978-88-6540-450-8
– Casaccia, Alexandre. Anatomy of Light. Score and parts. Self-published edition, October 2025. DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.17423458; also available on IMSLP.

Catalogue references:
– CIDIM catalogue entry: Anatomy of Light, Op.1 (Italian National Music Council, UNESCO partner)

License: © 2025 Alexandre Casaccia (SACEM). Released under CC BY-SA 4.0


PROGRAM NOTE

Anatomy of Light was composed as a tribute to Giacomo Puccini on the centenary of his death and premiered at the Bazzini Hall of the “L. Marenzio” Conservatory in Brescia, on 11 May 2024. This short, free-form work reflects on the relationship between musical legacy and the present, revisiting the style of early Puccini in an attempt to reconstruct the anatomy of a bygone aesthetic.

Though necessarily shaped by historical distance, this act of reconstruction yields a reward: it invites us to renew our engagement with Puccini’s voice through a process of presentification. The piece reenacts the lyrical voice—not through a singer, but via instrumental means—echoing the spirit of 19th-century chamber arias. The use of the saxophone—an instrument largely foreign to Puccini’s output—marks a deliberate departure from tradition. Yet it also gestures toward Turandot, where Puccini, in his late search for modern sounds and textures, included two alto saxophones. In this way, Anatomy of Light attempts to mirror the arc of Puccini’s own evolution: the romantic impulse reaching toward modernism, underlying the fertile intergenerational dialogue that animates the most vital artistic traditions.

A brief yet pointed quote from Un bel dì vedremo concludes the piece, once again evoking that bygone era – and hinting, perhaps, at its return. The piece is also available in an alternative version for clarinet and piano.