CeReNeM Journal, issue 4
below are four instantiations of corporeal failure in die Haut Anderer that invoke these themes of obsessive repetition and transcendence.
Example 1: die Haut Anderer (2008), for piano solo, mm. 110–114.
The pianist is required to accelerate until her hands are literally out of control. As the speed increases, the deviations from the notated pitches become more extreme, resulting in clusters by the final repetitions. Losing all control risks injury, as the hands could land at an awkward, painful angle. Virtuosity in this context requires the performer to invoke, paradoxically, both discipline and surrender: she must gradually approach then audibly transcend her own physical thresholds, such that mistakes are genuine and increasingly severe, while somehow maintaining enough control to prevent bodily harm.
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