"In the late 1980s, Sonbert began again using music, but now it was often classical music, as in the final section of "Friendly Witness" (1989), which had its premiere at the New York Film Festival, as did "Short Fuse" (1992), with its even more diverse musical accompaniment whereby, Paul Arthur wrote, "the goal of creating a soundtrack that would not simply amplify or subvert themes already embedded in the images but operate semi-independently within a larger structure of meaning was finally realized.