'Heaven's Door': Is this music?

The third Music in Time program of this year's Spoleto Festival boasted the American premiere of Karlheinz Stockhausen's "Heaven's Door." Not only was the weather challenging but so was the composition, and it opened in the Simons Center Recital Hall to a less than full, although curious audience.

Percussionist Stuart Gerber delivered an athletic performance by knocking on a door with various wood mallets. It was choreographed and stylish but also distracting.

Jasmine Kennedy appeared as the "little girl" toward the end of the work, and in spite of her charm and innocence, her role and significance was unclear as there was little form, structure or literary basis on which the audience could begin to experience this dramatic work.

Following "Heaven's Door," Ensemble Sirius presented "Kontakte," composed in 1959. While "Kontakte" was a difficult piece for the audience, Stockhausen came closer to engaging his audience in this composition.

The "contact" to which the title alludes was more evident with the percussive elements of metal, skin and wood, as well as the call and response between the two instrumentalists.

Toward the end of the 38- minute work, the clasping of the wood chimes alternately played by the two instrumentalists and then played together in rhythm was moving, and the musical structure was welcome.

John Kennedy, director of the Music in Time Series, introduced "Kontakte" and mentioned the significance of it as a masterpiece of serial composition. Even more memorable was his admission that this form of composition is "not everyone's cup of tea."

While the Ensemble Sirius was exceptional in the skill in which it delivered Program III of the series, and Stockhausen has certainly pushed the boundaries of composition, especially with the premiere of "Heaven's Door," it is appropriate to ask the question, "Is this music?"