JOURNALIST: What is the aim of your musical work?

PETER HÜBNER: On the basis of my investigations into the microcosm of music, on the basis of very personal inner experiences, on the basis of my view of today’s situation in the world and on the basis of my present personal assessment of the sense of music I strive to create and to spread harmony with music in this torn world.

I personally don’t see any sense in additionally demonstrating, analysing and supporting the existing disharmony in the world with my art.

I did this sufficiently until the end of the 60ies, and I also think that a number of other composers did this before and after me with great powers of persuasion, and still do so. None of them needs me to support their activities.

Nature shows us that a thing always needs its natural counterbalance. The perfect portrayal of disharmony and disorder by the avant-garde, through rock and pop music, as well as through the modern rhythmical fixed style of performing classical music, in my opinion, calls for the perfect portrayal of natural harmony and order as a natural opposite pole.

And as I see nobody working consciously creatively in this sector, I have taken over this task – I believe in everybody’s interest: Since the early 70ies I have devoted my research into the microcosm of music, but also my investigations into classical musical work and/or ethnic music, and following this, my musical developments and/or musical creations – to be consistent and without compromise – to the aspect of natural harmony.

However, it is my opinion, that I only seem to go against or defy the avant-garde in this respect.

JOURNALIST: Could you explain that in more detail?

PETER HÜBNER: I believe that by creating contrast, the performance of the avant-garde is illuminated. There are always stupid people – among the avant-garde, too – who think that in my work I have returned to the “stone age”.
They do not recognise that grasping the natural is an extremely modern task, and may entail enormous difficulties.

From the viewpoint of the microcosm, music by the avant-garde and therefore also the entire dissonant music is an absolute natural phenomenon – just like chaos and order are equally nature’s phenomena.

But during a time in which all musical experts have devoted themselves to the field of disharmony, it seems important to me for at least one person to concentrate on natural harmony in the sense of an opposite pole.

I have written plenty of atonal music. Creating atonal or tonal music was and is for me personally not a question of musical ability, but a question of conscience, of a free inner decision – detached from the fashions and trends of time, and from the appreciation connected with them.

©   A A R   E D I T I O N   I N T E R N A T I O N A L   2001