“Pépé on a Spring Day” is a piano work for children composed in 1967. It consists of three songs,‘Babbling’,‘Look Serious’ and ‘Good Baby!’. This work is included in the first volume of “Album of Piano Pieces for Children by Japanese Contemporary Composers,” commissioned and edited by Toho Gakuen Music school for children.

The composer Irino was the leading expert who introduced the German avant-garde twelve-tone music to Japan in the 1950s. Even in this work, as he said, “I thought of songs based on different pitches in order to give features to three songs”. Irino composed songs according to the pitch ideas as in the twelve-tone music.

I.  Babbling (Allegro)

This music turns around the second interval. Active chatting is carried out while major second and minor second are alternately repeated, or appears a whole tone scale by major seconds or a chromatic tone scale by chromatic scale.

II. Look Serious (Andante)

This song turns around the fourth and fifth intervals. The beginning melody which seems serious appears repeatedly while modulating.

III. Good Baby! (Moderato assai, cantabile) 

This music turns around the third interval.

Melodies are played like dialogue as a counterpoint, but each tonality is different (polytral), so this music is heard as if it has a humorous atmosphere somewhere.