Publication year 2011
Catalogue no. C.1058
Duration 11 minutes
Wesenheit ab Wesenheit
(2011)
(2011)
Publication year 2011
Catalogue no. C.1058
Duration 11 minutes
Worsaae found inspiration for the work in a story about the German prisoner Jörg Meyer, who during the late 70’s was confined to isolation in a Danish prison. Worsaae’s father was prison chaplain and in this way met Meyer who was imprisoned for espionage for the DDR in Denmark. Meyer sat in isolation without trial and waited for a ruling for nearly a year before being exchanged with a German prisoner and given the command never to show himself in Denmark again. Under Meyer’s stay in prison he gave Worsaae’s father the collection of poems Isolationsdigte (1979), which were written while in isolation.
After nearly 30 years hidden in a desk drawer the collection surfaced again. The poems are a kind of poetic documentary of which Nicolai Worsaae has selected 7. Since the driving force behind the work is a prision story about isolation Worsaae has composed with the ascetic space of the isolation cell in mind, the room which forms the framework for a life with many restrictions and little possibility of unfolding oneself. He has allowed this to form the rules of the game for the composition of the music, which has been reduced to a minimum. In order to place focus on the room, which attains such huge meaning under isolation, Worsaae implements sections for speaking choir and moves the subject around in the ensemble so that spatial aspects are made use of and become audible.
About the title Wesenheit ab Wesenheit Worsaae comments: “When I create my titles they should be slightly twisted, contradictory and dynamic. The word absence was too direct. When one is imprisoned one is placed outside of society and on standby. One is however still there even though one has been moved from a public to an isolated and closed space. One is therefore “present not present” – Wesenheit ab Wesenheit.”
From Isolationsdigte by Jörg Meyer: Kys, Isolation II, Mørket, I sengen, Vestre, Længsel.
Listen the composer talk about the work prior to the world premiere at the Huddersfield Contemporary Music Festival hcmf// 2011 on the Edition·S Soundcloud stream
All categories Solo 2-6 Instruments 7+ Instruments Choir Orchestra Music Drama and Stage Music Educational Music
Warping through my ears
2021 • Nicolai Worsaae
Choir
18 minutes
Vocal ensemble (SSAATTBB)
Replication #1
2014 • Nicolai Worsaae
2-6 Instruments
10 minutes
Mezzo-soprano, flute, and cello
PUSH
2018 • Nicolai Worsaae
Choir
8 minutes
8-part choir (SATBSATB)
WaWV
2014 • Nicolai Worsaae
2-6 Instruments
20 minutes
Soprano, (bass) clarinet, percussion, double bass & electronics
Nedstigning
2017 • Nicolai Worsaae
Music Drama and Stage Music
70 minutes
Sop, bari, cl, perc, clavichord, vln, db & electronics
Violinetude for børn
2016 • Nicolai Worsaae
Educational Music
1:30 minutes
Violin solo
Spilledåsen
2016 • Nicolai Worsaae
Educational Music
01 seconds
Piano solo
Vuggevise
2016 • Nicolai Worsaae
Educational Music
01 seconds
Piano solo
Løbebåndet
2016 • Nicolai Worsaae
Educational Music
40 seconds
Piano solo
Canticum In Vitro
2016 • Nicolai Worsaae
2-6 Instruments
10 minutes
Clarinet, piano, electric guitar/objects, violin & cello
Schritte
2010 • Nicolai Worsaae
Solo
8 minutes
organ solo
Upon Your Body I'm Crawling
2012 • Nicolai Worsaae
2-6 Instruments
8 minutes
harmonica & accordion
Squawk
2016 • Nicolai Worsaae
2-6 Instruments
String quartet & live electronics
Replication #2
2015 • Nicolai Worsaae
2-6 Instruments
8 minutes
Alto sax, acc, erhu & db
Kuro ton'neru
2013 • Nicolai Worsaae
2-6 Instruments
10:30 minutes
cl, trp, pno, perc, vl, vla, vlc + EA (tape) and video
Epilogus I
2013 • Nicolai Worsaae
2-6 Instruments
5:30 minutes
Vn, vla, vlc, pno
Zwischen den beiden Kammern
2013 • Nicolai Worsaae
2-6 Instruments
10 minutes
Fl, cl, perc, vn, vlc, pno
Eight and a Half Pint
2012 • Nicolai Worsaae
Orchestra
8:45 minutes
2.2.2.2/2.2.0.0/2 perc/archi
Du hast gesagt
2010 • Nicolai Worsaae
Solo
7 minutes
Soprano and electronics
String Quartet No. 2
2010 • Nicolai Worsaae
2-6 Instruments
14 minutes
String Quartet
Gesang durch eine Mauer
2009 • Nicolai Worsaae
7+ Instruments
12 minutes
Mezzo-soprano solo + pno, vl
Emphatische Ellipse
2008 • Nicolai Worsaae
7+ Instruments
4:20 minutes
1.1.1.1/0.1.1.0/perc/synth/live-electronics/1.1.1.1.1
Zugendlos
2008 • Nicolai Worsaae
Orchestra
10: minutes
3.3.3.3/4.3.3.1/3 perc/pno/synth/12.10.8.6.4
Brutalized Beauty
2007 • Nicolai Worsaae
2-6 Instruments
12 minutes
Fl, cl, perc, vn, vla, vlc, pno
Quaint
2006 • Nicolai Worsaae
7+ Instruments
11:20 minutes
Soprano, pno, vlc