Ionization (Varèse)
Ionisation (1929–1931) is a composition by Edgard Varèse for thirteen percussionists .
Instrumentation
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The piece is made up of 43 instruments:
3 large drums (medium, large, very large), 2 tenor drums , 2 snares , tarole (a kind of piccolo snare), 2 bongos , tambourine , marching drum, crash cymbal, suspended cymbal, 3 tam-tams, gong , 2 anvils , 2 triangles , Bell stick , cowbell , tubular bells , carillon , piano , 2 temple blocks , claves , maracas , castanets , rattles , güiro , high and low sirens and a “ lion roar ” (a large grating drum ).
music
The title is not chosen by chance: just as molecules ionize , so do the musical “cells”. In addition to physical phenomena, Varèse also named the futuristic artists Luigi Russolo and Filippo Tommaso Marinetti as influences for this work.
The musical effect is created by the sensitive and high-contrast interplay of the instruments. There are percussion instruments without a fixed tuning (bass drum, snare drum, cymbal), tuned instruments such as piano and tubular bells, and instruments that have a flexible tuning (siren, lion's roar). A complex structure of different rhythms and timbres emerges .
World premiere and recording
The first performance took place on March 6, 1933 at New York's Carnegie Chapter Hall. The conductor was Nicolas Slonimsky , to whom the work was later dedicated. Ionization was also Varèses first work recorded in the 1930s.
reception
Frank Zappa , a big Varèse fan, claimed that ionization inspired him to pursue a career in music.
Web links
- Detailed analysis of ionization [English]
- Ionization in the series "50 Modern Music Classics" on zeit.de
- Performance of the work