Ylang Ylang for Piccolo Solo (2025)

The inspiration for my new solo piccolo work Ylang Ylang arises from two seemingly disparate sources: what the commissioner, Katlijn Sergeant, told me about the flower Ylang Ylang, and a recurring nightmare from my childhood.

Native to Southeast Asia the Ylang Ylang blossom is renowned for its distinctive fragrance—feminine, rich, and floral, yet with sweet, woody, even slightly banana-like and sour undertones. My nightmare, by contrast, was an unsettling sensation of floating in a soft cloud, like cotton candy,  and then being suddenly pierced by a sharp spike.

These ideas converge and intertwine in the piece. The Ylang Ylang is evoked through the ambiguous, almost intoxicating tonal colour of the augmented triad, while the nightmare takes shape in a chromatic three-note cell from which much of the music is derived—alongside, of course, the piccolo’s piercing high register.

As a gesture of gratitude, I have dedicated Ylang Ylang to its commissioner, Katlijn Sergeant—a true devotee of contemporary piccolo repertoire—who gave the premiere in October 5th 2025 at the Finnish Flute Festival, Helsinki, Finland.

I hope you enjoy the piece.

Max Savikangas, 2025

Katlijn Sergeant, Piccolo, October 5th 2025 at the Finnish Flute Festival, Helsinki Music Centre, Sonore Hall, Finland.