»Überlebensmusik«: Kam / Widmann / Tetzlaff / Siirala

Messiaen composed the quartet during his 9-month captivity in a German prisoner-of-war camp, which he might not have survived without the strength that he drew from his music. This power of music becomes particularly evident when it is performed by brilliant musicians like this night’s performers, led by Israeli clarinetist Sharon Kam and violinist Carolin Widmann, a dedicated advocate of modern music. Apart from Messiaen’s quartet, the programme features music by Erwin Schulhoff, whose creations sound so original one might forget that its composer did not survive the Nazi internment camps, as well as Bártók’s »Contrasts«, which he composed for jazz clarinetist Benny Goodman.