From 1996 to 1999, I resided in Poperinge, a town in West Flanders, Belgium, for work. There, I engaged in the development of speech synthesis technology, becoming what is known as a "voice engineer," and this experience later led to the development of VOCALOID. Although my stay in Belgium at that time was on a business trip basis, the total duration extended to about one and a half years, and I still maintain contact with the family who ran the small hotel where I regularly stayed. They even came to Japan for my wedding.

Belgium is an interesting country: the northern half, the Flemish (Vlaanderen, or Flanders in English) region, is Dutch-speaking, while the southern half, the Walloon (Wallonne, or Walloon in English) region, is French-speaking. Since its founding, conflicts have persisted between the Dutch-speaking and French-speaking populations, leading Belgium to become a federal state in 1993, divided into the Flemish Region, the Walloon Region, and the Brussels-Capital Region. The "national anthem" of the Flemish Region is "De Vlaamse leeuw" (The Flemish Lion). It is characterized by its use of double-dotted notes. The lyrics and their meaning are as follows (modified based on Wikipedia):

De Vlaamse leeuw (The Flemish Lion)

Zij zullen hem niet temmen, de fiere Vlaamse Leeuw,

Al dreigen zij zijn vrijheid met kluisters en geschreeuw.

Zij zullen hem niet temmen, zolang een Vlaming leeft,

Zolang de Leeuw kan klauwen, zolang hij tanden heeft.

The proud Flemish Lion will not be tamed by anyone,

Even if his freedom is threatened with shackles and shouts.

No one can tame the Flemish Lion as long as a Fleming lives,

As long as the Lion can claw, as long as he has teeth.

Poperinge, where I stayed, was a Dutch-speaking area, despite being only a 20-minute bicycle ride from the French border. It seems to be a region known for a distinctive dialect of Dutch. Setting that aside, Poperinge is a hop-producing region, and in early autumn, magnificent hop vines, ready for harvest, can be seen everywhere. A festival called the "Hop Festival" (Hoppestoet) is also held every three years. I composed this piece while recalling these memories.