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Reflection on life and death written after the shock of losing two fathers in 1989 and 1990.

Basic materials are:

1. a medieval (Dufay) cadence, plus two variations on it.
2. 4 four-part chords, doubled downward in the minor seventh.

Part 1 is a desolate exposition of both themes.

Part 2, a very fast and virtuosic part, with a lot of horizontal movement, in reference to French organ music (Vierne, Duruflé).

Part 3, miniature, a voice that keeps trying to reach the A natural.
Once resting on the A, 2 outer-voices appear, slowly moving around an inner voice.

Part 4, a short and up-tempo commentary on the ‘Retrové’ from the ‘Codex of Robertsbridge’, the oldest known musical manuscript for keyboard instruments.

Part 5, a lot of pedal; echoes from the pedal part from Bach’s ‘Durch Adam’s fall’, countered by ever more intense chordtrills.

In part 1, 3 and 5 a trumpet briefly joins in.
A voice from the land of breath that colours and alienates exactly when needed.

The original version of ‘Arena’ from 1991 lasted 90 minutes, but after revisions in 1993 and 2020 its length was reduced to 35 minutes.
The parts can be performed separately.