If
Bernd Alois Zimmermann is regarded as a musical pluralist (i.e., one who accepted all styles and influences as equally valid, and dismissed the restrictions of the postwar schools), then his enigmatic works may be easier to understand as "outsider" music, rather than as inconsistent, confused experiments. In terms of sound production, melodic fragmentation, and harmonic complexity, Intercommunicazione for cello and piano (1967), Présence for piano trio (1961), and the Short Studies (4) for cello (1970) are the most recognizably avant-garde. Yet these works remain undefined by systems and seem composed solely through intuition, so varied are their techniques, effects, and whimsical quotations. In contrast, Capriccio for piano (1946) and the Sonata for violin (1951) are plainly tonal and almost neo-Classical, and bear some of the influences of
Stravinsky and
Bartók, often found in works composed immediately after World War II. Because the program suits the needs of the three performers and does not present
Zimmermann's works chronologically or in a broader context, this album gives a false impression of the composer's development. Violinist Petter Sheppard Skærved, cellist
Friedrich Gauwerky, and pianist
Ian Pace play the music with conviction and energy, though they inadvertently make
Zimmermann's music seem more eclectic than he may have intended.