Halleluja – Oratorium balbulum is a portrait of the times in which we live, says Peter Eötvös. It is a sarcastic work with postmodern medley passages across music history.

The plot takes place on several levels: among the performers as well as with the audience in the concert situation. The language is frighteningly clear, as is the rest of the situation we encounter: We experience Eötvös’s polyglot vision not so much in the language as in the music. There are numerous more or less recognizable quotations from Gregorian chant, Monteverdi and Schein; from Bach and Handel, as well as from Mussorgsky and Gospel music.

Alle vittime senza nome (To the Nameless Victims), a purely instrumental work, makes no use of language and nevertheless succeeds in conveying the images and experiences of our time. In three movements, the journey of those seeking protection is illustrated by music in a free narrative style, with delicate solo passages as well as broad waves of sound in the orchestra.

“Alle vittime senza nome is meant to remind us of the many Arab and African people who have climbed into overcrowded boats with dreams of reaching a better life only to drown in the waters of the Mediterranean off the coast of Italy.” Eötvös wants to create an awareness of the people that goes beyond the conventional images in the media.