In the 20th century, it often suffices to know a person’s date of birth in order to get an idea of his experiences and his fate. 1898, Viktor Ullmann’s and Norbert von Hannenheim’s year of birth, means witnessing World War I during the formative years of late adolescence, attempting to establish oneself during the 1920s – a time that was hardly 'golden', but rather downright chaotic – and eventually, after 1933, living through increasing darkness and danger of death. A time in which boundaries dissolve, all identities become indeterminate and solid points of reference seem no longer to exist.

The piano sonatas by Ullmann and Hannenheim bear witness to their faith in a high purpose of artistic endeavour. They demonstrate vitality through their power of form, wrested from the most adverse of conditions. This is what makes us appreciate and honour this music especially today.

In the more than 20 years of its existence, EDA records – founded in 1990 as Edition Abseits – has called many a peripheral musical area to the attention of an increasingly attentive audience. Whereas in the early years, classical chamber music in the broadest sense was the focus in the development of the catalogue, EDA soon participated as the very first label in the discussion about 'suppressed music' with highly praised first recordings of the so-called Theresienstadt composers.

After the turn of the millennium, the generation of composers represented by Franz Schreker and his pupils as well as an extensive exploration of the avant-garde Russian piano music of the second and third decades of the 20th century moved into the centre of interest. Following this, EDA documented the most important chamber music works for saxophone and piano on four CDs before initiating an in-depth investigation of the consequences of exile and Shoah on Polish musical life with the series 'Poland Abroad'. With pride and gratitude, EDA records can point to a circle of outstanding performers, many of whom have become friends and companions.