My first idea was to write a suite of several small pieces. The slow melodic movement came first. However, I realized that its expression did not fit in any way with the form I had initially envisioned. Completing the two following movements, I felt I was approaching intuitively a classical structure, something like a sonata form. Without real self-consciousness, I named the work “sonata”, a beautiful if much used title, but which reflects simply what it is.

The sonata ends with the slow movement, giving a sense of unbalance, as if something was left unfinished. I hesitated before finally deciding not to interfere with this final impression. It is neither sadness nor pessimism, just a serious and meditative thought. Deep within one senses, however, a sorrow rooted in stone and returning to stone, calmly.

Thierry Lancino, La Prée – november 1996