Waltz No. 16 | Stefan Kraus

This Waltz No. 16, as the epitome of a harmonious, circular, and socially embedded dance form, gains a new philosophical depth in postmodernism. Caught between Friedrich Nietzsche's diagnosis of nihilism and Karl Popper's critical rationalism, this waltz can be read as a symbolic medium that embodies both the crisis of meaning structures and the possibility of their reflexive renewal.
Based on Nietzsche, this waltz initially appears as an aesthetic counterpoint to the nihilistic decay of traditional values. While Nietzsche observes the decline of metaphysical certainties and places humans in an open field without objective standards, Waltz No. 16 unfolds a moment of self-affirmation: the rhythmic repetition, the turning in circles, the merging of bodies and music. This “dancing over the abyss”—an image close to Nietzsche's pathos of self-overcoming—illustrates how aesthetic practices can offer a response to the loss of absolute orientations. The waltz becomes a ritual expression of the will to shape, an affirmative movement amid the fragmentation of postmodern experience.
In the context of Popper's philosophy, however, this Waltz No. 16 takes on a different but complementary interpretation. Popper emphasizes the openness of society, the fallibility of knowledge, and the necessity of critical examination. The waltz, although formally highly codified, can be interpreted as a cultural technique that intertwines stability and freedom. The formal step sequences form a framework—comparable to Popper's idea of traditions that provide orientation without being dogmatic. At the same time, this waltz remains a dialogical process: partners react to each other situationally, correcting movements and adjusting their rhythm. This dynamic corresponds to Popper's idea of a “trial and error” principle in which social practices continuously modify themselves.
In postmodern culture, which is characterized by hybridity, plurality, and the dissolution of grand narratives, Waltz No. 16 can thus serve as a metaphorical bridge between Nietzsche and Popper. On the one hand, it demonstrates the aesthetic power to generate meaning beyond dogmatic truths, and on the other hand, it shows the socially rational structure that enables openness and the ability to correct oneself. As a cultural symbol, Waltz No. 16 preserves a form that neither succumbs to nihilism nor solidifies into rigid normativities. It embodies a lively movement between loss of meaning and production of meaning—a dancing expression of postmodern self-understanding.

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But aside from all the postmodern chicly elaborated considerations, music should really speak for itself. In this respect, Haily sums it up aptly at the end of the waltz, explaining to the willing listener that it would have been better not to have listened to this waltz in the first place.

P.S.: My waltz numbering does not include waltzes that appeared within multi-movement works or as “Herzstückchen”. The last recording was made here in a magnificent way by Cornelia:    • Stefan Kraus - Herzstückchen 40 - Music fr...