Amidst the successive creation of Petits Poèmes (A Page from a Diary), which capture fragments of daily life, Yamada began to add not only dates but also titles. This was related to his interaction with the dendrologist Wataru Terasaki and his wife Etsuko, particularly his love for Etsuko. This acquaintance is said to have begun when Etsuko, who lived nearby, took piano lessons from Yamada. Influenced by Etsuko, who had a deep knowledge of Japanese classical literature and enjoyed composing tanka, Yamada gradually began to give literary titles to the piano pieces he composed. This can be seen from the fact that the Petits Poèmes composed from around the summer of 1916 to the following year bear titles such as Yume-banashi (Dream Story) and Minori no Namida (Tears of Harvest). Furthermore, they bear the dedication "To Mrs. E. T."

Netami no Hi (Fire of Jealousy), composed on September 30, 1917, was first published by Composers’ Music Corporation in New York under the title "Japanese Ballade". Unlike the numerous Petits Poèmes composed in the same year, this work was written on a considerably grander scale, and pianistic techniques such as arpeggios with intricate note values are evident throughout. It was premiered on October 13, 1917, at the "Yamada Abend" in which he himself performed.