For more than 15 years Ričardas Kabelis has been residing in Stuttgart, Germany, and making rare but regular appearances at European as well as Lithuanian contemporary music events. The striking austerity, characteristic of the major part of his compositions, seem to flow from the underlying formal procedures he employs such as meticulous reduction of musical material. Quite a few of his works are based on the exposition of a certain single isolated musical parameter (such as rhythm, harmony, or timbre), eliminating the others. Since the early 90's, he delves thoroughly into the subtleties of microtonal music and puzzles of its rhythmic arrangement. Hardly audible changes of timbre, microintervals and acoustic intensity in his compositions immerse the concentrated audience into and endless space / time continuum. Clearly off the mainstream of contemporary music, however, oeuvre by Kabelis', probably the most radical and enigmatic figure in Lithuanian music, is considered neither easibly performable nor listenable.
