Angel, six miniatures for peace
op. 99, 2022
1. far away
2. near
3. very close
4. touching
5. everywhere
6. a poem
for bassoon solo
duration: 10 min.
commissioned by the bassoonist Theo Plath
CD recording for Hänssler, January 2023
Soloist: Theo Plath
Composer’s Notes
Angel, six miniatures for peace is a commissioned composition by bassoonist Theo Plath, to whom the piece is also dedicated. As a part of a whole musical project of Theo Plath dedicated to the theme “Balkans”, the inspiration of this composition is also the Balkans.
The Balkans is an important bridge between Asia and Europe, but suffered repeatedly from conflicts, wars and ethnic unrest, in which very many people died or had to flee. Different religions of the people of the Balkans have a formative effect on everyday life and culture.
I feel it is necessary to create musical constellations that have to do with the history of a place. To address certain often forgotten themes of history through music should encourage people to think about the past again and to question what positive conclusions can be drawn from it for today.
With these thoughts in mind, I developed the desire to compose a musical poem that could act as a stimulus for further reflection on the history of the Balkans. The different compositional moods, the tensions and strains, the timbres, the specific intervals, the phrases, the rhythm and the melodies of all six pieces tell this story.
The dramaturgical concept of Angel, six miniatures for peace consists of six short pieces. The six miniatures, or movements, create a series of six “steps” of a visual vision: the energy of an angelic figure coming closer and closer from afar, with its “message” becoming more and more audible as the six miniatures progress.
The first three miniatures – far away, near, very close – are intended as a dramaturgical prologue to the fourth miniature – touching – in which a completely new musical element is heard. The fifth – everywhere – is composed as an echo of the fourth, and then concludes the composition with the sixth – a poem.