This emotional contemporary work has gained widespread acceptance in recent years. Written in remembrance of the firebombing of the German city of Dresden, the work combines the most traditional composition techniques with the most contemporary, including representational notation.
Movement I "Prologue" (1:20)
This movement establishes the mood of impending disaster and presents the thematic material upon which the rest of the piece is based.
Movement II "Seeds in the Wind" (1:45)
The title of this movement refers to the method of "seeding" the bomb target with jellied gasoline and incendiaries. The movement portrays the fury of the bombing attack.
Movement III "Ave Maria" (2:00)
The material in this movement reflects upon the religious and artistic heritage of Dresden and becomes a prayer for the victims of the attack.
Movement IV "Fire Storm" (1:30)
In this movement, the sounds of the "Fire Storm" are re-created. Musically, the last movement serves as a resolution to the tension built up in the previous three movements.