Dorothea Hofmann

4 Toccaten

The chorale "Was mein Gott will, das g'scheh allzeit" is one of the oldest songs of the Reformation in its unconditional trust in God. The melody by Claudin de Sermisy, originally associated with a secular French text, apparently reached its ideal destination in this chorale text. In my toccata "What my God wants, happen at all times ..." the chorale melody is still hidden at the beginning; as expected from a toccata, chords, motor skills and dancing rhythms dominate. But if you look closely, many of these motifs are developed in detail from the chorale melody. The Toccata was premiered in the summer of 2023 by Rainer Goede in Bad Wörishofen. Duration: approx. 10 minutes

The fanfares of the beginning in the "Toccata per speranza" are vaguely reminiscent of the Olympic fanfare of 1972, then intended as a positive departure into a better world. Reality, however, showed its cruel side in the course of the games, the cheerful and the evil were frighteningly close to each other. But hope remains stronger. As long as there is life, there is hope. The Toccata was premiered in July 2023 by Elisabeth Sperer. Duration: approx. 7 minutes

In the Toccata quasi Fantasia sopra "Christ is risen" there are initially only very free motivic associations of the early medieval, Easter "Christ is risen". At the beginning, a gloomy atmosphere predominates, from which only individual melodic moments or chords emerge in a sudden flashing like gold stones in a mosaic. But together with the first virtuoso outbursts, the melodic references to the song melody also become more concrete, longer and come together. The increased joy of playing and motor energy lead into the complete version of the song, which finally appears. The world premiere in 2010 was played by Jürgen Geiger in Polling. Duration: approx. 10 minutes

The Toccata festeggiante "Come, God Creator, Holy Spirit" breathes tonal grandeur from the beginning, but the magnificent chords are like cries for help, disturbing and disturbing. Restlessness sets in and tries to gain the upper hand, virtuoso brilliance breaks through in cold, glittering runs. And finally, the chorale enters in the pedal, majestic and full of archaic confidence, while the virtuosity has found its own melodic line, which, surrounded by sparkling chord breaks, unfolds idiosyncratically over the chorale into dialogue with it. Chordal cascades echo after the chorale like cries of "Amen", and the Toccata finds its way back to its beginning with reassurance. The world premiere in 2012 was played by Sirka Schwartz-Uppendieck.

(Dorothea Hofmann)