I. Fast – Slightly less animated – With calm – Cadenza – Tempo I
II. Calm and melodious
III. Fast and groovy

World premiere: 26 March 2012, Würzburg, Theater in der Bibrastraße
Lutz Koppetsch | INNstrumenti Tyrolean Chamber Orchestra | Gerhard Sammer
Duration: 20 minutes

This three-movement saxophone concerto was written in memory of Bertold Hummel. This dedication is expressed musically in the first movement: the second section is initiated in the saxophone with the sequence B-E-D-H-E, its musical signature, and at formally significant points (for example, before the solo instrument enters), a twelve-tone layering of four consonant triads builds up in the orchestra, distributed across various instrumental groups. Both elements were used repeatedly by Hummel himself in his later works. Furthermore, some of the harmonic and melodic phenomena in this movement are based on fourth structures, as we frequently encounter in Hummel’s works, for example in his Partita Op. 79.

The form of the first movement consists of a sequence of contrasting sections, in the course of which the intensity of the movement is reduced whilst the structural complexity is increased. The ever-dominant solo instrument is contrasted by the orchestra in varying roles, initially with short, rhythmically pointed elements, then with more extended sections of polyphony in up to six parts. At the heart of the movement, a diatonic sound texture provided by the strings serves as a foundation for the saxophone, alternating with polyharmonic layers of triads derived from the ‘Hummel chord’.

Conceptually, the contemplative middle movement is based on a single melodic line spanning the entire range of the solo instrument, punctuated by seemingly static interventions from the orchestra.
The final movement thrives on the rapid alternation of gestures and structures, in which the solo instrument usually dominates, but is also integrated into the orchestral texture at times. Virtuosity and motoric elements, some of which are associated with jazz-related music, characterise this movement. In between, there are phases of calm with echoes of the two preceding movements and musical references to Innsbruck and Würzburg.

Christoph Wünsch

Christoph Wünsch, born in Landshut, initially studied piano and teacher training for secondary schools; from 1979, he also studied composition with Bertold Hummel, as well as music theory (with Zsolt Gárdonyi and Klaus H. Stahmer) and musicology. In addition, he undertook studies in film music and jazz (including with Bill Dobbins at the Eastman School of Music, New York). In 1998, he was awarded a PhD in musicology.

Various posts in his teaching career took him to the University of Bamberg, Heidelberg University of Applied Sciences and the Würzburg Conservatory as a lecturer in music theory and improvisation, before he accepted a position as Professor of Music Theory at the Detmold University of Music. In the winter semester of 2000/2001, he returned to the Würzburg University of Music as Professor of Music Theory and shortly afterwards took over as Head of the Studio for New Music. Numerous awards and composition commissions, as well as active involvement in further education, followed; in 2002, a visiting professorship took him to the University of Texas. Since 2017, he has been President of the Würzburg University of Music

He has published numerous books and essays on historical-analytical and pedagogical topics, including standard works on modern song accompaniment and compositional techniques of the 20th century.