is the third composition in an ongoing series of works inspired by  various species of fungi. In this piece, the inspiration is a mushroom that appears entirely ordinary: small, unremarkable, and  seemingly harmless. Yet beneath this quiet exterior lies a steady,  unyielding process of harm. The amatoxins it carries are patient  and constant, invisible yet relentless. Days may pass before any  sign appears, but the damage has already begun. The liver and  kidneys gradually fail. The process does not rush; it persists,  unchanging.

The work explores the tension between stability and escalation. On the one hand, there are steady, frequently recurring structures  that transform subtly over time, creating moments of calm and  a sense of order. On the other hand, the same structures gradually  intensify, layering upon themselves and building toward an inevitable climax. The calm is fragile, fleeting, and interwoven with  a mounting pressure.

This piece is a meditation on invisible violence: a kind of harm  that is steady, consistent, almost imperceptible in its rhythm. It  reflects damage that leaves no visible mark, cruelty that wears  the guise of calm, kindness, or familiarity. It is about structures  that seem protective or neutral but quietly corrode the self from  within.

The danger is not sudden; it is constant.

Sometimes it arrives as silence, sometimes as softness, but  the whispers grow sharper over time. The harm deepens. The softness turns to scar tissue. And the aftermath is hard to survive.

Barbara Zach

Composition commissioned by the Adam Mickiewicz Institute for Spółdzielnia  Muzyczna Contemporary Ensemble.