Program note

Sommerabend is a five-minute orchestral miniature that captures the quiet radiance of a summer evening by the sea. Inspired by a real scenery, the piece seeks to translate the golden haze of a low sun, the gentle shimmer of water, and the slow, lingering warmth of the air into sound.

At its core lies a harmonic idea — the gentle tension of major chords separated by a minor third. This interval, at once luminous and slightly unsettled, forms the backbone of the piece, coloring its harmonies with a sense of both serenity and yearning.

While firmly rooted in the late Romantic tradition, Sommerabend occasionally brushes against the palette of Impressionism. The influence of Ravel’s Daphnis et Chloé is heard in its shimmering textures and flowing, almost liquid orchestration, while the lush lyricism and long-breathed phrases nod toward the world of Richard Strauss’ Four Last Songs.

Rather than building toward a dramatic climax, the music unfolds in waves — moments of glowing stillness giving way to gently rising swells, like the sea lapping against the shore. By its close, Sommerabend leaves the listener suspended between day and night, light and shadow, sound and silence — much like a real summer evening that you wish could last just a little longer.