The work was premiered by Ensemble Ascolta at the Donaueschinger Musiktage in October 2022. In Children's Songs, references to historical children's songs are playfully intertwined with concrete sounds of play. Winther Christensen plays with hyper-quiet, rhythmically precise sounds in the ensemble, while the two percussionists create a Lego city on stage.
Prior to the premiere performance, Christian Winther Christensen described the work: "My work revolves around a children’s universe. It is divided into movements. It is playful and fragile. In some places I use a technique where the musicians play together with a track of pre-recorded material.
One of my ideas is to integrate sounds related to playing with toys into the live instrumental music, while the music itself contains references to children’s music through time. One of the movements is a large variation movement over a children’s song.
The musical references are not those of my own childhood, but the universe of children’s music began to fascinate me after I became the father of two children."
Find the score for Children's Songs here.
Carl Prisen was founded by Musikforlæggerne in 2013. Every year, 15 prizes are awarded to composers and songwriters across musical genres.
Learn more about Carl Prisen here.