ITHAKA for Koto with 13 strings (and voice) is inspired by the poem ITHAKA written in 1911 by Konstantin Kavafis, a Greek poet born in Alexandria (Egypt). ITHAKA describes the journeys of the ancient Greek figure Odysseus as opportunities of luck for someone's life, as a demand to live!, when he writes: "...hope that the way is long...", dedicated to the German-Korean composer Kunsu Shim, was written in Greece and Germany in summer 2003 with many thanks to the Koto virtuoso Makiko Goto.

Gerhard Stäbler