Hauch (2018) study for violin solo

Hauch n. (German): Hauch has no exact translation in English. It is a trace, touch, hint, tinge, soupçon, tang, wisp, or a breath of something. It implies a suggestion or intimation of the thing: a shadow, an aura, a glimmer hidden beneath the surface.

Hauch is a solo study exploring pianissimo timbral nuances at the top of the lowest violin strings; tracing fragments of melody, drawn on a thread in and out of silence.

Surface, weight and touch of musical performance: the bow drawing the sound out of silence; the slightest differentiation of touch on the string; the expansion of the muscles between the shoulder blades; the player´s in-breath preceeding the played tone…The fallible physical body behind the sound: feeling the weight of sound, exploring the essence of a timbre.

Rebecca Saunders, Berlin, May 2018