otis is right about musique concrete. henry's _fragments pour artaud_ does actually have some really nice parts but also has a lot of goofy spoken-word. don't leave out varese's "deserts" which was #5 on my 40-records list.
― sundar subramanian, Saturday, 19 May 2001 00:00 (twenty-two years ago) link
The first disc features a lot of fierce Ensemble InterContemporain pieces - "Phlegra", "Keren" (trombone, mostly) and so on. The second disc feature the harpsichord/clavecin works Sundar mentioned - "Komboi" being the best, leavened as it is with some nice percussion (dig those ceramic pots).
I have yet to hear any Xenakis which could be described as electro-acoustic; I understand "Persepolis" is the business?
Is it worth starting a Giacinto Scelsi thread?
― Michael Jones, Wednesday, 23 May 2001 00:00 (twenty-two years ago) link
― Josh, Wednesday, 23 May 2001 00:00 (twenty-two years ago) link
― Michael Jones, Thursday, 24 May 2001 00:00 (twenty-two years ago) link
― X. Y. Zedd, Friday, 25 May 2001 00:00 (twenty-two years ago) link
― Josh, Friday, 25 May 2001 00:00 (twenty-two years ago) link
― mark s, Sunday, 27 May 2001 00:00 (twenty-two years ago) link
Mark S - I'm sure you're right about the changing definition of e-a, it's just that, aside from wellying the harpsichord through some kind of internal amplification, I've not heard Xenakis' efforts in the broad domain of electronic manipulation. Or e m as I'd now like to call it.
All that business dovetails with what might more properly be called musique concrete (m c), of the sort you find on labels like Metamkine thesedays. Little discs. Big sounds. Good.
― Michael Jones, Sunday, 27 May 2001 00:00 (twenty-two years ago) link
but it's a nice time to collect Xenakis because Persepolis and legend d'er have been released too. The latter is basically 8 (channels?) of music with each bit taking centre stage for a while (the whole thing is nearly 50 minutes). Persepolis: heard it once on headphones and it was impossible to make any sense of it. My brain was fried and i couldn't register it.
I went to canada for three months and now am back so I'll give this a listen (on speakers this time) and report later.
― Julio Desouza (jdesouza), Monday, 2 September 2002 19:47 (twenty-one years ago) link
― bob snoom, Wednesday, 4 September 2002 11:21 (twenty-one years ago) link
my girlfriend loves persepolis
― bob zemko (bob), Friday, 20 December 2002 23:33 (twenty-one years ago) link
I'm almost thinking that it now rivals 'Legende d'Eer'. Can't even believe I'm saying that, but this mix finally seems to blend the sounds into a weightless, majestic mass that hangs in the air like doom. It no longer sounds like an undifferentiated multitracked soundscape, it sounds like a single living unity. I can hardly wait until midnight tonight to play it again.
― jl (Jon L), Thursday, 7 August 2003 21:46 (twenty years ago) link
― jl (Jon L), Thursday, 7 August 2003 21:51 (twenty years ago) link
Scottnyc
― Scott Briggs, Friday, 12 March 2004 02:04 (twenty years ago) link
(I know, this would be a more useful thing to mention if the concert were tomorrow night...)
― Paul in Santa Cruz (Paul in Santa Cruz), Friday, 12 March 2004 04:15 (twenty years ago) link
― Paul in Santa Cruz (Paul in Santa Cruz), Friday, 12 March 2004 08:48 (twenty years ago) link
scott- we have threads on many of these composers, use the search function at the bottom of the page.
since this thread was started I went to a xenakis concert where acoustic pieces from the 70s and 80s were played (they showed a couple of clips from a BBC doc on the fella): throughout I just kept thinking to as to why he didn't combine acoustics with electronic tapes. Also listening to a couple of Luigi Nono pieces really made me think abt this a bit more, maybe an opportunity missed there. The pieces themselves were too dry, nothing connected.
'kraanerg' is terrific.
also, the liner noted on cage's 'empty words (part III)' are the worst. really takes the prize as far as these things go.
― Julio Desouza (jdesouza), Friday, 12 March 2004 13:02 (twenty years ago) link
Scott
― Scott Briggs, Saturday, 13 March 2004 01:31 (twenty years ago) link
maybe no 'concerts' but I envy you any job within walking distance of the dream house
http://melafoundation.org/s&lpress.htm
― (Jon L), Saturday, 13 March 2004 01:41 (twenty years ago) link
― pete s, Saturday, 13 March 2004 01:45 (twenty years ago) link
notice TriBeCa is oh-so-trendy but there's no good concertsmaybe no 'concerts' but I envy you any job within walking distance of the dream house
-- (milto...), March 13th, 2004.
― Scott Briggs, Saturday, 13 March 2004 06:54 (twenty years ago) link
― geeta (geeta), Saturday, 13 March 2004 09:28 (twenty years ago) link
― Dadaismus (Dada), Saturday, 13 March 2004 09:33 (twenty years ago) link
ok just bought my third version of 'persepolis', contained on the new two disc Xenakis set on editions RZ. just wanted to say: this is the definitive mix. I'm very familiar with the Fractal & Asphodel editions, have even heard seperated mixes from the 8 channel multitrack, and this RZ mix is finally the one that nails it. It's like I'd never heard it before.I'm almost thinking that it now rivals 'Legende d'Eer'. Can't even believe I'm saying that, but this mix finally seems to blend the sounds into a weightless, majestic mass that hangs in the air like doom. It no longer sounds like an undifferentiated multitracked soundscape, it sounds like a single living unity. I can hardly wait until midnight tonight to play it again.
-- jl (milto...), August 7th, 2003.
See I didn't think I'll be able to tell the diff between this and the fractal version, but I can def hear that weightless-ness you seem to be hearing.
This CD also comes in with another of his electroacoustic compositions 'polytope de cluny', which is not available anywhere else. And its very good.
The edition RZ 2 CD set is THE xenakis to have. CD1 gives recordings of his compositions for orchestra from the 50s and 60s and they are great attempts are reconfiguring orchestral sound. If you like 'gruppen' and 'heterophonie' (kagel) you need to hear this.
The chamber music set on montaigne doesn't quite do it for me, I think 'stochaism' worked incredibly well for orchestras, but not effective enough when the numbers are down.
So basically the best stuff available:
1) ed RZ 2 CD set2) EMF CD and 3) legend d'er (as great locust music)
There is another fractal CD with 2 more electronic compositions (from late 70s, early 80s) but I think he is repeating himself.
― Julio Desouza (jdesouza), Monday, 10 May 2004 07:28 (nineteen years ago) link
― Julio Desouza (jdesouza), Monday, 10 May 2004 07:36 (nineteen years ago) link
― prima fassy (mwah), Monday, 10 May 2004 08:13 (nineteen years ago) link
Also: I'm forming this idea that xenakis compositional peak years are from 1955- 1972. Anything outside those years that I have heard seems to have that edge missing.
― Julio Desouza (jdesouza), Monday, 10 May 2004 08:55 (nineteen years ago) link
the three you've named are certainly my favorites. I'd also add the asphodel recording of Kraanerg & the chant du monde disc with Eonta/Metastaseis/Pithoprakta.
playing 'concret PH' tonight on resonance FM at 7pm, like a goon
― (Jon L), Monday, 10 May 2004 09:38 (nineteen years ago) link
― Dadaismus (Dada), Monday, 10 May 2004 09:40 (nineteen years ago) link
(I'm getting quite interested in bubblegum, any good collections out there)
Had forgotten 'legend...' is from '77 but I think on the acoustic side, anything I've heard doesn't seem to have grabbed me, but ok I'm sure there are a few out there.
prima- also get that AMM record with formanex (fibrr 06)
also at sound 323.
http://fibrr.records.free.fr/catalogue.html
― Julio Desouza (jdesouza), Monday, 10 May 2004 10:00 (nineteen years ago) link
very very different from the first second: the ticklingly quiet high frequency tones have all been savagely compressed and colored up, and made loud. much less subtle, far more brutal.
still the same basic structure, but radically remixed, all the sounds have new relationships to each other, and _everythings_ been noise walled and limited, much much less dynamic range than the original 1978 stereo version. the transitions between sections are much less noticable because the volume's been maxed out almost instantly. While it's interesting to hear some of these familiar sounds loud and closeup, the curve and sweep of the piece has gone missing.
just listened to the new one, wondering what was missing... then put on the old one to make sure... nope, still absolutely lifechanging. the squealing sounds leap out at you shockingly loud and the hovering clouds in the background seem alive... back to the new one... the squealing can't come in loud because the mix already has the life compressed out of it and the hovering clouds have the life crushed out of them...
I would objectively call the new mix an error, though I'll try it out a few more times, this new mix is a gaudy modern mess
― milton parker (Jon L), Saturday, 14 May 2005 22:26 (eighteen years ago) link
― milton parker (Jon L), Saturday, 14 May 2005 22:33 (eighteen years ago) link
http://www.rfh.org.uk/main/series/273.html
― mzui (mzui), Tuesday, 16 August 2005 11:07 (eighteen years ago) link
― When You Wore a Tulip (and I Had a Big Red Nose) (Dada), Tuesday, 16 August 2005 11:12 (eighteen years ago) link
― NickB (NickB), Tuesday, 16 August 2005 11:22 (eighteen years ago) link
― When You Wore a Tulip (and I Had a Big Red Nose) (Dada), Tuesday, 16 August 2005 11:24 (eighteen years ago) link
ba
claat
― hold tight the private caller (mwah), Tuesday, 16 August 2005 11:33 (eighteen years ago) link
I saw this in last months -ish of the *guess which mag*. witnessed nono's 'la fabrica illuminata' (soprano/electronics) being perf earlier this year, the tape sounds great on that space - it can almost provoke a bout of synesthesia, i tells ya. so 'legend d'er' is the one to look forward to, maybe the movie, maybe everything else.
― Julio Desouza (jdesouza), Tuesday, 16 August 2005 13:21 (eighteen years ago) link
― Matt #2 (Matt #2), Tuesday, 16 August 2005 15:29 (eighteen years ago) link
― Outsider Enter Port City (sexyDancer), Tuesday, 16 August 2005 15:33 (eighteen years ago) link
very frustrated that none of the reviews seem to be mentioning that it's a completely new mix, either. even the people who should know better.
there's a lot of people who'd prefer their Xenakis polite so this new mix does serve a viable social purpose, but y'know, fuck them
― milton parker (Jon L), Tuesday, 16 August 2005 16:58 (eighteen years ago) link
I'm finding this hard to believe
― Diddyismus (Dada), Tuesday, 16 August 2005 16:59 (eighteen years ago) link
Not just the season ticket holders -- I'm thinking of several Boulez-head colleagues of mine who like their delirium heavily organized and have always found Xenakis uncouth or something, so the idea of a refined mix that reigns in & flattens Legend probably appeals to them.
― milton parker (Jon L), Tuesday, 16 August 2005 17:14 (eighteen years ago) link
get this
not the CD / DVD on Mode with the big X on the cover.
― milton parker (Jon L), Tuesday, 16 August 2005 17:27 (eighteen years ago) link
with a new mix by FURT!
re-read bits of this thread: there is a diamanda-xenakis conne(x)ion but she also worked with vinko globokar, whose 'oblak semen' disc is a must. and globokar was one of the first prominent solo perfs of 'new music', cpl of lps on deustche gramophon you'll find knocking round 2nd hand shops. Listening to her galas' 'vena cava' and 'schrei x' but coupling with her work in song, she's almost like an ideal entry point to all the 'hard' composition stuff. those discs, esp 'schrei x' detail her work with microphones and perf art tactics.
read the wire primer - anyone have any reservations about that chamber music disc? sure its necessary but I really disliked his piano pieces, found that they really undermined the whole package, which had those excellent str quartets. also wasn't into his solo stuff, like the LP he talks abt is named 'intecommunicazione' and that's by zimmermann, which i found it to be the best work for cello ever (its for piano and cello but the piano stalks it around)
I agree with paul (he puts it v nicely on this thread) on scale-down he's a tad disappointing.
but there's quite a bit to look out for: been neglecting 'oresteia'. 'joachimes', 'echange' and 'n'shima' sounded great. I never got 'pleaides' as I found the perc duo I witnessed at the perf i went to last year quite dull but maybe I'll try this, even if philip clark has a reservation.
― Julio Desouza (jdesouza), Saturday, 20 August 2005 13:06 (eighteen years ago) link
― Julio Desouza (jdesouza), Saturday, 20 August 2005 13:15 (eighteen years ago) link
― b8a, Saturday, 20 August 2005 16:50 (eighteen years ago) link
"As a partisan against the Nazis, he (Xenakis) sustained injuries to his face and lost an eye..."
Which is complete bollocks, he lost his eye fighting for the Communists against the British. To be precise, he lost it during an assault on a British tank. If the South Bank can't get it right... Who's going to any of this? I haven't bought any tickets for any of the concerts yet.
― Raymond Douglas Dadaismus (Dada), Thursday, 22 September 2005 09:20 (eighteen years ago) link
― hstencil (hstencil), Thursday, 22 September 2005 13:51 (eighteen years ago) link
― Brakhage (brakhage), Thursday, 22 September 2005 14:33 (eighteen years ago) link
I'm going to every concert I think, esp. looking forward to Legende d'Eer.
― Matt #2 (Matt #2), Thursday, 22 September 2005 14:55 (eighteen years ago) link
― Dadaismus (Dada), Tuesday, 27 September 2005 11:10 (eighteen years ago) link
The CD has risen to the top of my 'needs to be remastered' list.
― milton parker (Jon L), Tuesday, 27 September 2005 18:14 (eighteen years ago) link
― mzui (mzui), Friday, 7 October 2005 22:04 (eighteen years ago) link
― blunt (blunt), Friday, 7 October 2005 22:18 (eighteen years ago) link
― Julio Desouza (jdesouza), Saturday, 8 October 2005 07:59 (eighteen years ago) link
the highlights of the film were te big X himself. esp:
scene of him at his desk typing nos into a calculator, writes something down, then types some more numbers then goes 'ugh' as if to say that the calculation couldn't be made! - hilarity (of course he prob types the wronged key in)
also revisiting his old school (awful chequered trousers, btw), at one point going to the old ruins where theater used to take place - goes up a few steps - starts citing shakespeare in dodgy eng accent, then asks 'that ws good no?'
― Julio Desouza (jdesouza), Monday, 10 October 2005 10:07 (eighteen years ago) link
loads of artskool hotties to gawp at tho hurrah
― hold tight the private caller (mwah), Monday, 10 October 2005 10:52 (eighteen years ago) link
― hold tight the private caller (mwah), Monday, 10 October 2005 10:53 (eighteen years ago) link
'loads of artskool hotties to gawp at tho hurrah'
damn!
grr i couldn't make it but the xenakis gig i went to last year had one of the mego ppl (russell haswell i think) re-mixing xenakis - i dunno, I've been to a concert of berio's electronic music and without visuals this kind of thing falls a tad flat but still grr i couldn't stay!
― Julio Desouza (jdesouza), Monday, 10 October 2005 11:13 (eighteen years ago) link
i dont think i'm in a position to judge to what extent legend had been remixed or rejigged etc wrt to an original, but there were visuals; basically a glowing ember rectangle of red light on the stage, slowly growing and contracting and being all intense like. i will charitably say YAWN it sort of focused the maelstrom of sound (ie. a tardis materialises in the rainforest for 45 mins) insofar as it occured to you that one man composed this alone.
― hold tight the private caller (mwah), Monday, 10 October 2005 13:03 (eighteen years ago) link
― Matt #2 (Matt #2), Monday, 10 October 2005 17:07 (eighteen years ago) link
(I read bw's essay over a year ago on esther leaslie's site wtf! its been around for ages...maybe ppl want to overrate, it might be felt that he ws wronged bcz he dared to tell LIKE IT IS! I can't even quite recall that much about his argt right now)
― Julio Desouza (jdesouza), Monday, 10 October 2005 17:21 (eighteen years ago) link
― hold tight the private caller (mwah), Monday, 10 October 2005 18:00 (eighteen years ago) link
Indeed, there seemed to be an amazing number of attractive women there, I must go to more concerts of avant garde classical music!
― Dadaismus (Dada), Tuesday, 11 October 2005 08:57 (eighteen years ago) link
there's another thread where alext rather elegantly dismantles BW's entire 'reading' of Adorno in the space of a few short paras, superb
― Ward Fowler (Ward Fowler), Tuesday, 11 October 2005 18:40 (eighteen years ago) link
Thursday 24 November 2005 - 7.30pm new noise / John Kenny
Programme:Iannis Xenakis - Dmaathan John Cage - Ryoanji Pedro Gomez-Egana - New work (World premiere) Tansy Davies - New work Burgess / Fairclough / Kenny / Miller - New work (World premiere) John Kenny - Wild Stone John Kenny - The Voice of the Carnyx Emily Hall - Join Dobrinka Tabakova - Frozen Rive Flows Ian Willcock - For the Republic
Part of the BMIC's Cutting Edge series 2005. For more information please visit the BMIC website. Tickets cost £7 & £10 and are available on 020 7928 1902.The Warehouse, 13 Theed Street, London SE1 8ST
(near waterloo east - saw a wonderful concert last month w/ works by Finnissy, Barrett, Rzewski, Ian Pace and more)
― Julio Desouza (jdesouza), Thursday, 24 November 2005 12:48 (eighteen years ago) link
― Turangalila (Salvador), Saturday, 11 March 2006 04:57 (eighteen years ago) link
http://br.youtube.com/watch?v=yztoaNakKok&feature=related
― Milton Parker, Monday, 28 July 2008 15:45 (fifteen years ago) link
'gmeeoorh' for organ (1974) is the shit.
I'll bet it is, but how to hear it? Has it ever been recorded?!!??!?! Groovin' on lots of solo Xenakis pieces lately. Love "Keren" for trombone, "Nomos Alpha", "Evyrali" et al.
― Ich Ber ein Binliner (Tom D.), Tuesday, 18 November 2008 11:41 (fifteen years ago) link
And, apropos of nothing, my 10 favourite titles of Xenakis' pieces:
WaargOophaaGmeeoorhKraanergKeqropsPhlegraTrookhTerretektorhAchorripsisTherapsPithoprakta
― Ich Ber ein Binliner (Tom D.), Tuesday, 18 November 2008 11:45 (fifteen years ago) link
Nitpick: should be Troorkh I think, for trombone + orkhestra?
― anatol_merklich, Tuesday, 18 November 2008 13:27 (fifteen years ago) link
Oh yeah, Troorkh, that's right
― Ich Ber ein Binliner (Tom D.), Tuesday, 18 November 2008 13:28 (fifteen years ago) link
More Xenakis in "that" London, but didn't they do "Eonta" and "La légende d'Eer" the last time round?
― Tom D (Lenin's his feir and Liebknecht's his mate) (Tom D.), Wednesday, 9 February 2011 13:38 (thirteen years ago) link
"La légende d'Eer" once every six years is still too seldom. there should be a room where you can go to hear it in 8 channels every week
I saw the performance of "Oresteia" outdoors at CalArts last November and it was one to remember. they handed out hundreds of resonating coil noisemakers to the audience for the ending while the children's chorus ran through the audience shrieking the final 'chords'. maybe it was just the picnic & wine atmosphere but it all seemed to have a fun vibe even though it still sounded terrifying
― Milton Parker, Wednesday, 9 February 2011 18:18 (thirteen years ago) link
shaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaar
― eid orb (nakhchivan), Thursday, 5 May 2011 00:19 (twelve years ago) link
hoping there isn't some trite ecumeno-mystical paratext trash accompanying this cuz for me it's just the sound of everything altogether
― eid orb (nakhchivan), Thursday, 5 May 2011 00:26 (twelve years ago) link
I love how it sounds the way the title would suggest it sounds.
― corey, Thursday, 5 May 2011 00:31 (twelve years ago) link
that would be shaaAAAAAaaaaaaaaaaaaAAAAAAAaaaaaaaaaar to account for the exquistite portamento
― eid orb (nakhchivan), Thursday, 5 May 2011 00:34 (twelve years ago) link
Search: SynaphaïAntikhthonMetastaesisAïsJonchaiesEvryaliHermaShaar
Destroy:KyaniaHorosIoolkos
― corey, Thursday, 5 May 2011 00:35 (twelve years ago) link
http://i.imgur.com/p2AR0.jpg
― eid orb (nakhchivan), Thursday, 5 May 2011 10:16 (twelve years ago) link
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fn5F9m4Qf3w
xenakis died fifteen years ago today
― nakhchivan, Thursday, 4 February 2016 12:21 (eight years ago) link
Tempting new 5LP and CD box set of electroacoustic works now available. 14 copies of the vinyl left at the time of writing, don't sleep if you want one of these:
https://karlrecords.bandcamp.com/album/electroacoustic-works
― joni mitchell jarre (anagram), Friday, 14 January 2022 08:13 (two years ago) link
^^^I have been listening to that today. Persepolis (1972) and La Légende d’Eer (1978) on repeat.
― calzino, Tuesday, 25 January 2022 15:28 (two years ago) link
Waiting for my copy of the 5CD to arrive from Germany.
― but also fuck you (unperson), Tuesday, 25 January 2022 15:34 (two years ago) link
Scored a nice clean copy of the GRM Works LP just the other day. I love the note for Bohor:
The author deliberately abstained from giving any descriptive information on his piece, letting the listener choose an imaginary route for himself
― Ward Fowler, Tuesday, 25 January 2022 15:35 (two years ago) link
I'm getting so obsessed with this, I doubt I'll listen to much else for the next week.
― calzino, Tuesday, 25 January 2022 15:38 (two years ago) link