Andere Gesänge (2002)
(Intermezzi for soprano and orchestra)

Proverbs were an early preoccupation of mine, well before I knew that later they would become material for my own works. The poetic ingenuity of proverbs is always stimulating, conveying subliminal folk wisdom with picturesque acuity.

The textual basis of Andere Gesänge, a composition commissioned by the WDR, consists exclusively of existing proverbs, which I compiled. The individual songs have specific themes: laughter, time and death. I chose proverbs in different languages. Between Latin, Italian, French, Spanish German and English, striking differences and obvious variations become evident; but the meaning always stays the same. Accordingly, the piece attempts to reflect the inherently musical variations within language, as well as what primarily distinguishes it: its communicable experience.

M. K.