Auftakte, achthändig (2003)
(for two pianos and two percussionists)

Hands are probably the only part of the human body that all musicians keep in motion in order to make their instrument sound. (Even if I have not had this claim scientifically tested, the active role of the feet can certainly be described as quantité négligeable). Without upbeats, entries would only be dull silhouettes, uncertain and wobbly. Many variations of these omnipresent signs, sometimes visible or only hinted at with raised eyebrows, determine the theme of my piece.

At the same time, this composition is for the time being the last link in a chain of works that began with the Impromptu for piano À deux mains (1995) and continued to develop as a work-in-progress. In 1996, the unchanged basis of this piano part was followed by Auftakte, sechshändig; here I added a colorful percussion instrumentarium for two players. In Auftakte, achthändig, the scoring of this score continues to grow with a second piano.

It goes without saying that I am always tempted to tackle such a special compositional problem. Each opus in this progressive series is related to the piece immediately preceding it, but at the same time engages in a dialog with future works (which are also still unknown to me ...): The concrete and the immaterial shake hands imaginatively, right from the opening.

M.K.
(Translation by Edition Peters)