During the composition of "Green" ("November Steps II", for orchestra, 1967: "steeped in the sound-color world of the orchestral music of Claude Debussy") Takemitsu said he had taken the scores of Debussy's "Prélude à l'Après-midi d'un Faune" and "Jeux" to the mountain villa where both this work and "November Steps I" were composed. For Oliver Knussen, "the final appearance of the main theme irresistibly prompts the thought that Takemitsu may, quite unconsciously, have been attempting a latter-day Japanese "Après-midi d'un Faune"". Details of orchestration in "Green", such as the prominent use of antique cymbals, and "tremolandi" harmonies in the strings, clearly point to the influence of Takemitsu's compositional mentor, and of these works in particular.