Présence

Description

In B. A. Zimmermann's fantastical ballet blanc Présence for piano trio and dance, the composer brings together Don Quixote, Molly Bloom and Roi Ubu—the ensemble's namesake—three figures from world literature, each assigned to one of the trio's instruments. Verses from poems by Paul Pörtner and richly allusive musical quotations, presented by a silent “speaker”, unfold into an enigmatic web of references and connections that either lead nowhere or are linked and spun onward in the audience's imagination.