Currently, rather loud and bombastic pronouncements are coming out of the USA. Yet reduction is actually part of the identity of American culture. The "New York School," to which Morton Feldman and Earle Brown belonged, is a prime example of this "less is more" approach. Here, the smallest fragments of motifs are varied and minimal structures are designed, meticulously transformed in time, form, and space.
Both Feldman and Brown would have celebrated their 100th birthdays in 2026. Reason enough for a tribute, complete with some minor sensations: Feldman's "Dirge" and Brown's "The Kind of Bird I Am"—two unearthed works from the Basel-based Paul Sacher Foundation—will be presented for the first time. "Dirge" has not been performed since its premiere with Feldman conducting. When Feldman composed the work in 1943, he was still in school. The piece has nothing in common with his later personal style, but rather with that of Stefan Wolpe. Feldman became Wolpe's student in 1944. From his student days comes "Episode" from 1949. Here, his personal style is already more evident, while "Orchestra" from 1976 is a mature work. The three Feldman pieces trace the composer's development, forming a fascinating portrait. A cheeky response to Max Ernst, on the other hand, is the Brown piece from 1957. "What kind of bird are you?" the famous painter is said to have asked him. The result is a 20-second miniature, now being performed as a posthumous world premiere. An American answer to Arnold Schoenberg's treatise of the same name from 1910/11 is John Adams' "Harmonielehre" (Theory of Harmony). It combines Mahlerian romanticism with the striking drive and shimmering timbres of 1970s "Minimal Music"—an energetic, highly explosive firework display.

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