Skip to main content

Upcycling - Boulez's 'Notation' and BBC Symphony Orchestra.

I was fortunate enough to attend last nights concert at the Barbican - the BBC Symphony Orchestra performing 'Notation' and 'Pli Selon Pli'.  Interestingly, both works are considerably old.  'Pi Selon Pli' was written at the end of the 1950s and 'Notation' was completed in piano form just at the end of the Second World War, pre Boulezian serialism.  Its present manifestation (for orchestra) begun in 1978 and was then reworked in 1984 and 1987.  "Pli Selon Pli" is over 50 years old.  In historical terms, it is halfway to being officially recognised as an antique.  "Notation" has been 'recycled'; it begun as a piano work and has been transformed into a modern orchestral work. In a modern terms, we would refer to this kind of recycling as something which has been "upcycled"; that's where recycled...

... old products are given more value, not less.
(- Reiner Pilz)



Imagine an item of furniture, at the end of the war, which has been loving restored; redecorated and totally invigorated with modern structural considerations .  This is the effect of Boulez's 'upcycling'.  There is, however, a downside to this idea.  The notion of 'upcycling' appears to be ultimately flawed:


Boulez is celebrating his ninetieth birthday.  At some point, it will not be possible to update this work.  As far as I know, Boulez has effectively stopped composing new music.  The desire to constantly modernise old compositions is doomed. When this happens, what will be the effect on the music? Will it sound dated; consigned to a moment in history, like the electronic sounds of Stockhausen's Gesang der Junglinge"? I don't think so. Varesse's "Hyperprism" is nearly a hundred years old and it still has a edge to it - not the same 'upcycled' vitality of Boulez's "Notation' but an edge nonetheless. In my opinion, I don't believe that there is any real need for "upcyclng" - not unless something completely new is revealed; like an unexplored meaning born of our age.  The real secret for creating musical freshness is ingrained in the performance. A new performance can reveal something really fascinating about our era (so long as it stays true to the principles inherent in the composition).  With orchestral music, having a conductor that is sensitive to the score and creative enough to lead players into a new perspective of the music is essential.  The BBC Symphony orchestra's performance would have been something that Boulez may have approved.  It was honest and precise. It allowed the music to entertain rather than impose an interpretation that would interfere with the communicative process. One of the most important aspects of Boulez's creative life is that he has been his musical restoration.  The pealing back of nineteenth century layers.   Removing the musical cliches that we have become accustom to.

I do realise there is an apparent contradiction. On one hand, Boulez wants to create a language which is completely new and on the other hand he wants to 'upcycle' old material. This whole notion needs further consideration...What if I 'upcycled' Brahms? Does that create a new piece of music full of inventiveness and vigor?  Isn't 'upcycling' a longing for the past which is one of the most significant elements of Romanticism - a concept that he has spent his life escaping from?

All these concerns are academic.  His popularity has risen which often comes with age.  Although there will always be people who doubt his judgement, longevity as a composer has boosted his support.  His concerts this year have been well attended.  It shows the rightful respect for a great composer.  But he should beware.  By his own words...

Revolutions are celebrated when they are no longer dangerous.

Popular posts from this blog

What is Stockhausen's legacy?

Karlheinz Stockhausen is one of the most important composers of the post war era. He is partially responsible for the creation of the post war modernist music.   But what is his true legacy? Was he the leading composer in his field? Did he invent the 'timbralist' idea of generating music from a single sound? Well, he did accomplish that concept with  "Stimmung'' (Voice) which is completely designed around the single chord of a B flat ninth . But he wasn't the first.  Giacinto Scelsi wrote "Quatro pezzi per orchestre" which is based a single note per movement and that work was written in 1959. Quatro pezzi per orchestre - Scelsi I seriously doubt whether Stockhausen knew about Scelsi's achievement when he wrote Stimmung in 1977. Perhaps one of his greatest works  is " Gruppen'' (Groups) composed for three orchestras. Did it change the way we use the orchestra?  He was a pioneer, especially in the early stages of hi...
Read more

In the shadow of a genius.

Recently, I have discovered a fascinating revelation about the composers we admire so much.  That behind many geniuses, there usually is a predecessor lurking in the background.  It reminds of that often quoted phrase by Picasso A  good  artist borrows and  great  artist steals Now, I am not suggesting that the composers who I mention are stealing peoples' ideas - there is no evidence to support that fact.  However, I am suggesting that the idea of a genius who came from nowhere may not be accurate.  Let's take the case of Ernest Fanelli.  Who? You might ask.  He is a significant but unknown person in the development of impressionism.  He is an Italian born composer living in Paris.  He composed a good deal of 'new' music at the end of the nineteenth century.  His ideas were quite radical; his instrumentation included harmonics, sul pont., he used wordless choruses.  Unfortunately, he wasn't as talen...
Read more

Helmut Lachenmann

H elmut Lachen mann is relatively unknown outside of Germany.  Nevertheless , h e is a figure wh o is growing in significan ce in modern music circles.  Despite his wide experience, h is lack of broad appeal is, in my opinion, largely d ue to the individuality o f his music.  He is  not easy to categori se in an era which is   dominated by trends and cliches. A simple way of describing his music is... *"musique concrète instrumentale". The notion is the creation of a subtlety of transformation of timbre, a manipulation of a continuum from sound to noise, from pitched notes to pitchless textural exploration, and all that in the sphere of (mostly) purely instrumental music. That means that in Lachenmann's music, there's a world of sound that rivals and even surpasses what electronic and electro-acoustic composers can achieve.  -Guardian. Essentially ,  he is a acoustic composer writing electronic sounding music.  He is somewhere...
Read more