World premiere: 4 December 2000, Würzburg, University of Music
Sebastian Bernhard | Thorsten Lindner
Duration: 1 minute
Publisher: -
www.danielhensel.de

The concert of the Hummel Minutes will remain in my memory forever, as it took place on the day I received the news of Gerhard Schedl’s death. On that Monday, I had to decide whether to sink into mourning at home or attend my little world premiere in honour of Bertold Hummel’s 75th birthday. I opted for the birthday concert, which I experienced in a daze, but would not have wanted to miss. For me, in my third semester, it was already an honour to be allowed to write for him, and overall it was a successful concert with successful pieces. Sometimes dates coincide in strange ways.

Manfred Trojahn told me at the time that Bertold Hummel had died. Unfortunately, I only got to know him briefly, but what will stay with me is the freedom and openness with which he approached stylistic conventions without having to compromise his own identity as a composer. That freedom and openness towards others, without any ‘class snobbery’. He also gave beginners the feeling of being taken seriously. That is why I have fond and warm memories of him.

Daniel Hensel (2005)