Otto M. Schwarz

Composers Dinner

Three works with quotations from well-known composers are contained in this tongue-in-cheek collection. Otto M. Schwarz has produced an outstanding recording of these works with members of the Slovak Philharmonic, which is available on all streaming and download platforms. 1. THE AMADEUS WATCH: Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart's own watch - if he had one - ticks away. The ticking carries us back in time with a piece that stylistically imitates the music of the 18th century in melody, harmony and rhythm. 2. COMPOSERS DINNER IN HEAVEN: At the music publisher De Haske, a composers' dinner was an integral part of trade fairs or meetings. The dinner was very popular among anyone who sat at it, not least of all because it offered one the opportunity to chat informally. Based on such a meeting, Otto M. Schwarz has a composed a work that describes an imaginary dinner of great classical masters on a cloud in the sky. Guess which composers are present by the references in the form of musical quotations and stylistic devices! 3. SCHERZO FOR CLARINET QUARTET: The work, in 12/8 time, moves in a rapid furioso. Underscored by a continues eighth note rhythm, the work creates in the listener the sensation of a frantic rollercoaster ride. The theme moves throughout all the parts and, following a chromatically moving chord sequence, ends in a dramatic crescendo.