Querschnitt

This book is a cross-section of five decades of packed programs from the Witten Days for New Chamber Music. It includes works by composers ranging from Abrahamsen to Zimmermann, from Aperghis to Zender, from Cage to Kagel, and from Rihm to Riehm—works that have made music history.

The selection from more than 1,000 premieres and first performances comprises 111 works that are representative of the festival, its forms, formats, and formations: from solo performances to various ensemble constellations to chamber orchestras or music theater; the instrumentation is vocal, instrumental, mixed, concertante, electronically enhanced, experimental, performative, installative, moving in the border area between film, literature, or sound art, encompassing genres such as assemblage, listening station, or audio film, which were invented especially for Witten.

The portraits of the works reflect on their craftsmanship, meaning, value, and novelty, contain biographical information, outline their creation and background, and touch on their reception, "afterlife," resonance, and historical impact. The book can be read as a brief history of the festival and of recent chamber music.

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