At the request of the work's commissioner Heinz Holliger this duet has very few passages that call for 'unconventional' performance techniques. In exchange it exploits the many musical possibilities opened up by two instruments with closely related timbres: wide-ranging antitheses and commonalities of expression and movement cantabile duets convergences in unisons octaves and fifths. (Rudolf Kelterborn)Challenging concert pieceInteresting combination of instrumentsUse of new performance techniques
