Hans Otte (1926-2007) is probably the least known composer associated with the repetitive, “minimalist” school. When this iconic musical movement is mentioned, one immediately thinks of pioneers such as La Monte Young and Terry Riley, or major stars like Steve Reich and Philip Glass in the United States, Michael Nyman and Gavin Bryars in the United Kingdom, Louis Andriessen in the Netherlands, etc. But the German-Polish Hans Otte? Crumbs. Yet, he wrote several notable works in the genre, including the Book of Sounds (Das Buch der Klänge) composed between 1979 and 1982.
It is a cycle of twelve pieces for solo piano, where a delicate work on the quality and beauty of the sounds created by the soloist flourishes, in individual repetitive-type architectures, but also in a general arc-shaped architecture that makes the entire cycle more holistic.
The occasional listener will notice the harmonic transformations, evolving toward greater density and chromaticism, as the cycle progresses toward the sixth part, right in the middle. Then, up to the twelfth, the atmospheres lighten again.
The discerning listener will notice other technical subtleties that make the experience fully satisfying and stimulating, such as references to Chopin, Debussy, and Messiaen.
The American pianist Conor Hanick offers a lively interpretation, very attentive to the multiple details of the score, although muted, somewhat veiled (perhaps the recording?), in terms of colors. Several other recordings exist, including one under the Naxos label with Ralph van Raat, and another, excellent one, with Herbert Henck at ECM.
A major work to discover quickly, if you haven’t already.
