On our blog, our contemporary composers present their favorite work from our catalogs. This time: Robert HP Platz introduces Klaus Huber‘s Erniedrigt – Geknechtet – Verlassen – Verachtet... .

"The score of Erniedrigt – Geknechtet – Verlassen – Verachtet... is lying on my floor, no table is big enough for it, not even my large working desk. At first sight this piece seems to be hyper complex and megalomaniac. How many conductors do you need to perform it anyway? Five? What kind of concert hall is big enough for its orchestra? And isn’t there a contradiction between the effort to perform it and the social(-ist) message of the composition? There is at least no chance to perform this piece in poor countries; the requirements are just too luxurious. 

Less is more?
No.

In 1983 I worked at Donaueschinger Musiktage as a conductor and composer myself. If I remember correctly I went to the final rehearsal and the world premiere of Klaus Huber’s piece. Today I still recall these performances with enduring fascination. There was a sea of musicians and an ocean of sounds… It was overwhelming, although there still was a soft and moving beauty from time to time.

While listening you had the impression that there was somebody who has written music with all his heart. You could feel his outrage about the injustices in this world. I heard and even sensed the crushing and immediate acoustic violence of oppression, a violence that knows no mercy or remorse. At the same time I also heard and sensed a love for what is weak and vulnerable, a love for the human being itself. In the end there was shock and distress – but also hope, an image of lightness. The human being emerges from the hardships of oppression, and like a bird he flies to freedom: “am Himmel ziehen die Reiher” (the herons are flying in the sky).

In spite its lavish requirements, this composition breathes humanism and purity; even people that despise contemporary music would feel that. I also believe or at least hope that a misanthrope (and there are so many of them at these times) would recognize the mirror in front of his face when listening to this piece. He would leave the concert as a different person – provided that you would get him into a performance in the first place. 

The message of Erniedrigt – Geknechtet – Verlassen – Verachtet... is not heard enough, and Klaus Huber’s maybe most important composition is not performed enough."