Hindemith - Konzertstuck
This duet for two altos is a significant contribution to the duo repertoire from the unique Paul Hindemith. There is an ambiguity about Hindemith who adopted no one previously established style, not serialism nor atonal expressionism; not neoclassicism nor jazz flirtation. His harmonic language differs even from the French post-impressionists and seems to adopt a sort of formal, modal sound at once austere and interesting. This is evident throughout this duet which also contains much idiomatic writing for saxophone. The piece was written for Sigurd Rascher but not performed until some time after its composition. There are strong moods established even with only two voices and the melodic lines continually weave in and out of each other occasionally creating quite striking phasing effects. Whilst there are clear moods it's sometimes hard to gauge exactly what the emotional thrust that Hindemith hand in mind. Working in Nazi Germany, Hindemith seems, as with Shostakovich in the Soviet Union, to have had a rocky relationship with the authorities, sometimes being in favour and sometimes not. Perhaps there is a reserve that would have lifted had he been writing under different conditions.