Music Information Centre Lithuania has released digital sheet music of Šaukia mane prie savęs (Calling me closer), a piece by Rita Mačiliūnaitė for kanklės, a Lithuanian folk instrument of the box zither family. The composition, suitable for both the stage performance and training, is also expected to draw attention of musicians playing similar instruments in Latvia (kokles), Estonia (kannel) and Finland (kantele). 

“Running from yourself is impossible, just like from your own musical aesthetics. I write what I am, therefore whenever I diverge, intuition eventually wins and brings me back to myself,” Rita Mačiliūnaitė said of her 2020 piece. She wrote it, apart from other things, in order to enrich the repertoire for kanklės and inspired by Aistė Bružaitė, a lecturer at the Lithuanian Academy of Music and Theatre and a busy performer who plays kanklės in Lithuania and beyond. 

The rubato parts and improvisation that the piece calls for should, according to the composer, evoke the performer’s creativity, while the virtuoso elements require considerable rehearsal.

Šaukia mane prie savęs is a valuable new addition to the relatively thin collection of music for kanklės by Lithuanian composers. Rita Mačiliūnaitė has written two versions of the piece, for a solo performer requiring more professionalism, and for a duet, which is less complicated. 

The creative process and publishing have been financed by the Lithuanian Council for Culture. 

For more music, please check https://musiclithuania.com/lt/collections/rita-maciliunaite