(SW1024)
Instrumentation: mezzo-soprano, clarinet in B-flat, violin, viola, violoncello
For this 12-minute, three-movement work, the composer was awarded 1st prize in a composition competition held in Bonn in 1986 by the East German Cultural Council. The premiere then took place in the same year at the Funkhaus Hannover with the soprano Isabell Lippitz; further performances followed, including at the Alte Oper Frankfurt with the Mutare Ensemble.
Above all, the contrast between the lush, flowery baroque lyricism of the texts and the mostly austere, for long stretches almost avant-garde music dominates the field both in the basic mood and structurally.
The formal peculiarity of the sonnet, with its two quatrains of opening and two quatrains of closing, is traced here compositionally, for example, in the juxtaposition of homophonic and polyphonic compositional technique, while the vocal part unfolds in predominantly free recitation, mostly syllabically, but at appropriate points also melismatically over the sometimes very complex accompaniment, just as the expression requires.
Also worth mentioning is the instrumentation, which from the outset provides for a chamber-musical sound with clarinet, violin, viola and cello for the accompaniment, which, in contrast to the usual piano-only accompaniment of lieder settings, allows for a considerable increase in subtlety in the interpretation of the text.
Martin Schmeck
Note: The sound files are intended for experienced musicians and orchestra leaders to get a first impression of the style of a composition. Synthetic sound generators, which do not aim to satisfy audiophile demands of a music consumer, were used as a basis.