Ein geschlossener Waffenstillstand
Duration: 6:22
Written in: 2009
In a passage from Harmonielehre (1922), Schönberg stated that the current tuning system, the equal tempered, is a “temporary station” or “closed truce” (“geschlossener Waffenstillstand”) that will have to be re-evaluated in terms of the natural intervals of the overtone series. In reference to this quote, ein geschlossener Waffenstillstand is the juxtaposition of chords based either on the overtone series or the equal-tempered scale, whereby the marked differences in inflection, the beating patterns, and the subtones that result from the natural tuning come to the fore.
There are two options for performance of the piece. The first option is to play only the playback without the live instruments. The second option is for live performers and playback. For this option, the instrumentation is as follows:
Instrumentation
Instrumentation is variable, from one to seven instruments. If there are only a few instruments, the performers may jump to another part from measure to measure, but this should be coordinated beforehand to avoid too many unisons.
Instrument I = a bowed string instrument or a synthesizer.
Instrument II = a bowed string instrument or a synthesizer.
Instrument III-VII = woodwind, brass, string instrument or voice