The melodic material of Udvarim Achadim ("and the same words") is based on four songs: a recitation of the Koran (Surah al Qadr), a trope from the Jewish Torah (Genesis 1: 1-2), a Hungarian lament (from the Somogy region) and a plain-chant from St. Gallen (Codex Einsiedeln 246). Each saxophone transforms the melodic fragments of a given song; sometimes the saxes intertwine, sometimes they play in counterpoint, and they always breathe together. As the piece progresses, certain phonetic elements of the songs gradually reveal their melodic shadows, until translations of the Hebraic text of Genesis 11: 1 are heard: “… and the whole earth had one. language and the same words. "

Udvarim Achadim (and the same words) was commissioned by the Quasar saxophone quartet with support from the Canada Council for the Arts. The work is dedicated to Zsófia Surján. I would like to express my deep appreciation to the members of the Quasar saxophone quartet for their generous help in writing this piece.

Premiere dates

The percussion version premiered in Victoria on January 28, 2010 while the version for saxophone quartet solo was premiered in Winnipeg on February 2, 2010. The electronic version was premiered on March 31, 2010 in Montreal as part of the concert Les mutations dynamics. The version with countertenor, shawm, accordions and electronics (named Migdalim Bavel) was premiered simultaneously in Montreal and Bergen on March 4, 2023 during the Intercontinental Dialogues concert at the Montreal/New Music Festival.