Kagel, Mauricio “Alles wechselt, All things change” [Winter & Winter]

Picked up at the Streetlight penny pitch mere days before Kagel???s death.

Quirinus??? Liebeskuss is an interminable affair wherein the chorus, singing ancient monosyllabic German poetry, trades blows with the chamber orchestra. Not recommended.

Serenade is a trio wherein MK attempted to challenge the inherent ???serenity??? or ???evening??? of the situation. The players bounce from scene to scene, really picking up steam at the 10-minute mark. The flute dominates early, and the hurdy-gurdy wails pretty good towards the end. The exotic instruments are nice enough, but it???s the episodic nature that really sells this piece. It ends with a typically irreverant Kagel fluorish ??? a random two-chord guitar cadence.

Doppelsextett is for string and woodwind sextets. Apparently something of a dialogue between the two elements, like the first piece. But this time the voices are thicker and more intertwined, and the result is much more enjoyable. I???m thinking Kagel may not write as well for voice…

–Cujo, KFJC, Oct 2008