Peter Gahn: »To the Underside«

Peter Gahn won the 2022 Giga-Hertz Production Prize for his piece "De-Escalating Skies I+III", written for alto saxophone and live electronics. The piece is based on the sound of underground pipeline systems, whose civil and military structures Gahn translates into the “pipe sound” of the saxophone. The jury emphasized that Gahn's composition develops a complex system of sound codes that delves deep into social and political strata, framing music as a form of resistance. Rather than deriving its tension from virtuosity, the composition derives it from the inner workings of the sounds, which spread rhizomatically throughout the space and invite active listening. He is now presenting his work "To the Underside" (2024–25) for bass trombone, played by Karsten Süßmilch, double-bass trombone, played by Jan Termath, and live electronics, also as a world premiere concert. Sound direction: Thomas Hummel and Daniel Miska.