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BRAHMS-SMURF-MUELLER Johannes Brahms: Clarinet Quintet op. 115 Brahms's late work for clarinet and string quartet is an example of accomplished compositional art. As coherent as the work is in its form, a closer look reveals a cosmos of compositional finesse and artistic nuances. The work is based on a classical framework, which Brahms repeatedly expands and questions. In the first movement he exposes four very different themes. The development, on the other hand, seems rather simple in its processing – it manifests itself, however, in a somewhat calmer tempo, »quasi sostenuto«, and Brahms pulls out all the stops of the art of modulation here. The recapitulation forms a very free resumption of the exposition, which at the end increases to a climax, until the melancholic mood of the beginning returns at the very end. The second movement is in A-B-A form, with the B section contrasting sharply with the quiet major cantilena of the A section. The middle section is a rhapsodic cadenza for the clarinet, in which Brahms tailored his penchant for Hungarian folk music to the clarinet. The third movement begins with a nod to the third movement of his First Symphony, in which the clarinet begins a never-ending melody. The cozy Andantino is soon abandoned, however, and a scherzo introduced by the strings thwarts the cozy atmosphere with an urgent impetus. The Andantino is then briefly touched upon again only in the final bars. In the fourth movement, Brahms chose one of his favorite forms: the variations, although without explicitly labeling them as such. They are very free variations, in which each instrument is shown from its best side and the most diverse characters form a colorful final bouquet of this accomplished work. Doing justice to this masterpiece of chamber music places the highest demands on the performers. It contains such a wealth of expressions and moods that it requires specific elaboration. No movement can be played in a uniform tempo. However, the tempo changes must be chosen in such a way that they appear organic. The interpretations by Wilhelm Furtwängler, who brought Brahms' music to life in an exemplary manner, served as a model. Both the effervescent drama, the sweet elegiac cantilenas, the lightness of dance and the deeply felt passion - to name just a few important qualities - Furtwangler brought to bear in an exemplary manner. Matthias Müller Martin Schlumpf: The Five Points In the 2002 film Gangs of New York Martin Scorsese describes the constant clashes between the natives and the Irish immigrants in New York in the 60s. The scene of the bloody battles is the area in central lower Manhattan, the »Five Points«. These finger-shaped crossroads form a veritable melting pot of the different cultures that have settled there. In my clarinet quintet The Five Points It is no longer about conflicts fought with weapons, but about the formal design in the field of tension between contrast and analogy of the five movements of the piece - each with its own unmistakable characteristic imprint - here too a melting pot of different musical forms. The whole thing can be imagined as a promenade between the five corners of the »Five Points«, where the various gangs were located. I structured the lengths of the individual sentences according to the Fibonacci series introduced by Leonardo Fibonacci in 1202, in which each following number results from the addition of the two previous numbers. The sentences are structured in such a way that from the first, shortest sentence (55 seconds), the durations increase continuously, with the exception of the longest sentence (377 seconds), which is fourth instead of last. The liberties I took in implementing this scheme bring you back, so to speak, from the ideal realm of numbers to the more mundane reality (the bottom of the »Five Points«). In addition, inclined ears will be able to hear hidden echoes of the music of the Clarinet Quintet op. 115 by Johannes Brahms from 1891 in a few places in the last three movements. It was a pleasure for me to "bend" my musical language here and there in such a way that, as a homage to the great composer, the Brahms allusions (never quoted verbatim) flow in organically and are dissolved again. Finally, after the birth of my first grandson Basil in August 2012, I inserted a “happy” passage at the point where I was writing (in the third movement), which is based on the melody fragment B–A–E flat. Martin Smurf Matthias Müller: In 23 parts What's new today? This question has lost none of its topicality in music. The music of the 100-tone band is still perceived as modern, although it is already 2 years old, and even the avant-garde - by which I mean the accelerated tendencies that emerged after the Second World War - has already started to get gray hair. To compose so-called experimentally - with predominating dissonances, noises, free forms and the almost complete renunciation of a dominating pulse - can no longer be considered inventive and new today. The credo of modernity »il faut être absolument modern« is called into question. I'm not looking for novelty, but for personal characteristics and originality in a double sense. In my instrumental compositions - in contrast to my work with electronics - I orientate myself on the previous generation from the late 19th century and the turn of the century. The compositional rigor and expressiveness of a Brahms play a role here, as does the sound composition of a Debussy or the freedom of the free atonal phase before the twelve-tone music. I therefore prefer clearly audible forms with a pulse as the basis of rhythmic structures and a soundscape that covers the spectrum from soft consonances to sharp dissonances. In my string quartet In 23 parts the formal concept stood at the beginning of the compositional process. Ever since my first compositions I have been interested in the complex structures of classification systems. The organizational patterns described in systems theory play a role again and again. Two aspects are in the foreground: 1. the hierarchy of classification systems and 2. the mutual penetration and networking of the individual parts. The composition of a string quartet offers an ideal working environment. In no other formation can the penetration of the musical parameters be carried out so well. The String Quartet In 23 parts consists of one movement and is divided into 23 parts by general rests of different lengths. These in turn are grouped into four main parts: exposition - development - recapitulation - conclusion. The piece was based on Alban Berg, whose music I admire and which, despite its compositional rigor, always thrives on its great expressiveness. The number 23 was a fateful number for the Viennese master, who died young. Matthias Müller |
program:
Johannes Brahms (1833-1897) Clarinet Quintet in B minor, Op. 115 (1891) 34:58 Martin Smurf (* 1947) The Five Points for clarinet and string quartet (2012) 19:17 Matthew Mueller (* 1966) In 23 parts for string quartet (2012) 20:28 total time 74:10 Matthew Mueller clarinet |
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