Orchestral Works II O. Ketting

What is characteristic of Ketting’s work in general and of his Third and Fourth Symphony in particular is the seamless amalgamation of a healthy Stravinskian critical distance through which a hot-blooded expressionism in the style of Alban Berg has been filtered. Another characteristic of Ketting’s four completed symphonies to date is their non-classical organisation, despite his unmistakable commitment to tradition. Only the Third Symphony is composed of separate movements; all the others are monolithic in structure. The Third Symphony is written for normal modern orchestral forces, but in his Fourth Symphony the woodwinds are conspicuous by their absence; the particular colour of this work is defined by colourful contrasts between the brass and the strings. The nucleus of Ketting’s music: tradition is not something that has once existed, but is rather a value that confirms its worth only in the sounds of today.