The dialogue between a human being, whose physical existence is limited, and the surrounding energies, which are boundless, as well as their coexistence and mutual influence, has formed the thematic background of many of Auerbach’s works, including Suite Concertante.

Although the suite was conceived without an extra-musical program, its musical language is symbolic and multi-layered, allowing for multiple interpretations. The Baroque idea of a suite in relation to dance may also be applied to the work in a certain way. What is life, after all, if not a constant, ever-changing dance with time?

The material of Suite Concertante comes from the three prelude cycles Auerbach composed in 1999: twenty-four preludes for solo piano, twenty-four preludes for violin and piano, and twenty-four preludes for cello and piano. Together, these cycles form a triple journey through all major and minor keys.

Combining material from the three cycles into a single work allowed Auerbach to condense her experience with the prelude cycles and reveal their inner connections. At the end of the suite, all twenty-four major and minor keys pass by like shadows, returning the listener to the beginning of the work and closing the circle.

• Dance with Time The suite transforms the Baroque idea of dance into a contemporary meditation on temporality.
• Prelude Cycles Its material draws from three cycles of twenty-four preludes composed in 1999.
• Circle The work returns to its beginning as all major and minor keys pass by like shadows.

Suite Concertante reflects the fragile and often tragic thinking of our time. The search for sounds out of silence holds the individual movements together like a thread leading out of a labyrinth.

Perhaps only in silence can the steps of time be heard.