She has a melody that she plays on the piano with the touch of an angel;
so simple and so spirited! It is her favorite song and it restores me from all
pain, confusion and melancholy when she plays just the first note.

Johann Wolfgang von Goethe
The Sorrows of Young Werther
Translation by the composer

Observations

• The composer is of the opinion that perfect pitch (or at least a version thereof) can be learned. To reach this goal, one should attempt to sing the first note of each piece without the aid of an instrument. After a time (and repeated playings) the player will not only be able to sing the beginning of each piece in the correct key, but will also recognize each piece, when he hears only the first note, just as young Werther describes in the quote above. In other words: each piece functions as a mnemonic device for the tone with which it begins.
• All tempo and dynamic indications are given merely as loose suggestions. Creativity is greatly encouraged.
• All grace notes are meant to be played before the beat.
• Transcriptions for other instruments, in the opinion of the composer, could only yield positive results. Due to the nature of the composition, however, the pieces should be played in the original keys.
• The 25 canons contain all 24 major and minor keys, with C major appearing both at the beginning and at the end. The first note in each piece is the tonic; the second, middle C (or B#). It will be noticed that this yields each interval (both ascending and descending), a fact that may also be exploited for ear-training purposes.
• The entire set can be played through with repeats in about 20 minutes.
• The pursuit of perfect pitch aside, the composer hopes these pieces will be received in the manner in which they were conceived; as music, first and foremost.