My friend the Indian -version for Yamaha SY99 solo Willem Tanke

In 1995, on the advice of the eminent sound designer Ernst Bonis, I bought a Yamaha SY99 synthesizer. At the time, this was a state-of-the-art instrument and many still consider it as one of the finest synthesizers ever made. I was delighted to find that, among numerous other possibilities, the SY99 was an extremely sensitive instrument, to be compared with, for instance, the 18th century clavichord. In 1996, I composed the original version of "My friend the Indian" for the SY99. This served as a framework for collective improvisations by the Astor Ensemble. One year later, I made a version for organ solo which became "Meditation 12" on the CD "Meditations for a lent", issued in 2007. This organ version still serves as a framework for collective improvisations by The Art of Doing Nothing Ensemble (the former Astor Ensemble). I made the recording for this example on YouTube in 2009. The various versions of "My friend the Indian" play a role now in my research "A new approach to playing keyboard instruments". It is a good example of what I call "The Art of Doing Nothing", which may be described as follows: "In a practical sense, The Art of Doing Nothing may be understood as the art of playing with relaxed precision and a minimum of movements. Well-executed, this can create favourable conditions for a higher understanding of The Art of Doing Nothing: the wisdom to sublimate the ego during performance and let the music flow".

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