Almost from the very beginning, the EPhB has repeatedly focussed on the music and person of Morton Feldman. Fascinated by his inimitably unique language, its expressiveness and depth, as well as the multi-layered interweaving of Morton Feldman’s personality with artists and musicians of his time, his music has become an integral part of EPhB’s programmes.
After having programmed several extended works with very small ensembles, such as “For Philip Guston” and “For Christian Wolff”, we are now devoting ourselves to works with medium-sized ensembles and – untypically for Feldman – of extremely short duration. In chronological order, the programme spans a creative process of twenty-five years (1951–1976) and thus directs the listener’s “gaze” towards changes as well as the profound consistency and coherence in Feldman’s work. Stylistically, it covers almost all the styles that Feldman explored until he found his unmistakable late style, which announces itself with “Routine Investigations”, e.g. graphic notation (“Projections”); Feldman’s “pointillist”, post-Webernian phase (“Two Pieces”, “Piece for 7 Instruments”); indefinite long durations of sounds with uncoordinated interplay (“Durations”) as well as his homage to a great painter friend (“De Kooning”).
Feldman’s unmistakable late style is heralded by “Routine Investigations”.
Jürg Henneberger