WORKS FOR ORCHESTRA
Iannis Xenakis - Toshi Ichiyanagi - Yoichi Sugiyama
Iannis Xenakis (1922-2001)
Jonchaies (1977)
A decisive developmental trend in musical art in the second half of the 20th century was the shift from mere "enjoyment" to the search for entirely new, previously unimagined forms of expression. In this respect, the career of Iannis Xenakis is exemplary of artistic innovation in the 20th century. Iannis Xenakis's music emerged from the application of mathematical and stochastic principles to the creation, resolution, distribution, and density of sounds. Although the term "mathematical" may suggest something cold and inhuman, the attempt to shape large-scale phenomena—such as the contours of clouds or flocks of birds—inevitably requires a stochastic mindset. As a trained architect, Xenakis embraced this method unashamedly and explored its possibilities until the very end.
Jonchaies, composed for 109 instruments and premiered in 1977, could be seen as a counterpart to the electronic piece The Legend of the Eagle which was conceived at about the same time. Although the two pieces differ greatly in their sonic effect, Xenakis insisted that they are based on the same basic mathematical concept. The core element of Jonchaies is a spatialized, non-octave scale based on the so-called sieve theory, reminiscent of the Javanese Pelog scale (e–f–g–h–c). This scale is expanded and transformed over the course of the piece, creating a striking and haunting soundscape. The work begins with a stormy string glissando, repeatedly interrupted by a shrill note in the high register, reminiscent of the tense atmosphere of Hitchcock's Psycho Shortly afterwards, the timpani sounds, and a sparse melody based on the pelog scale emerges. This introduction is certainly one of the most impressive openings in Xenakis's oeuvre. The twisting and winding of the eighteen-part strings creates an expression that, strangely enough, evokes a certain nostalgia. However, as Xenakis himself noted: "This piece begins noisily, then periodic elements are inserted by means of stochastic functions" – the rhythmic structures gradually shift, with the pulse accentuated by the percussion. A long crescendo gradually builds to an almost wild intensity, almost slipping into chaos. After the storm has passed, a quiet, gentle sound space emerges, characterized by trombone glissandi. At the end of the piece, only the highest notes of the piccolo remain, while the reverberation of the brass sounds from various directions fades away.
Toshi Ichiyanagi (1933-2022)
Double Concerto for Violin, Shamisen and Orchestra (2021)
Toshi Ichiyanagi, born in Japan in 1933, moved to the USA after graduating from high school to study at the Juilliard School. There he met John Cage, whose music had a profound influence on him, and a period of close collaboration followed. When he returned to Japan in 1961, he brought Cage's aleatoric style with him, while also presenting a series of his own experimental works that caused a sensation in the Japanese music scene. His career did not end with these early innovations. Starting in the 1970s, he soon incorporated repetition techniques into his music, and by the early 1980s he had completed several large-scale works—operas and oratorios—that seemed to unite and reconcile his earlier approaches. His spirit of experimentation continued until the end of his life. Ichiyanagi constantly questioned the nature of time and space; for him, the two dimensions were inseparable. This perspective, reminiscent of Cage's view, also corresponds to the Japanese sensitivity towards nature and temporality.
Ichiyanagi's last composition was the Double Concerto for Violin, Shamisen and Orchestra, completed at the age of 89. The choice of the Western violin and the Japanese shamisen as solo instruments for a double concerto is extremely unusual; Lou Harrison's Concerto for Gamelan Instruments and Cello would be one of the few comparable pieces. It even appears to be the first time that violin and shamisen were combined in this way. Yet it was more than just a novelty: Ichiyanagi had been searching for ways to bring together Eastern and Western musical languages since the 1980s. The double concerto represents one of the high points in his long-standing exploration of this question.
The absence of wind instruments is striking; instead, the orchestra features four percussion ensembles, which unfold a remarkable palette of tones. The first movement begins with the solo violin; the shamisen soon joins in, and from the very beginning, a cadenza-like gesture prevails. The shamisen plays a rapid chord sequence, the orchestra enters, and a multi-layered texture immediately develops. The characteristic gestures of the shamisen are transferred to the strings, especially the solo violin, creating a vivid, memorable sound effect.
The second movement could perhaps be described as Ichiyangi's own brand of minimalism. The solo instruments are intertwined with relentless repetitions in the violas and cellos, resulting in a variety of moods. In the middle, the percussion, violin, and shamisen come together in a fluid passage that gradually interweaves Eastern and Western temporal flows. Eventually, the opening material returns, the repetitive patterns appearing in the low strings. In the final moments of the piece, the rhythms of the solo instruments unite, creating a rich, powerful resonance. This moving conclusion represents the fulfillment of Ichiyangi's artistic life's journey.
Yoichi Sugiyama (* 1969)
Self Portrait (2020)
Yoichi Sugiyama, born in Tokyo in 1969, began studying composition with Akira Miyoshi at the age of twelve and later graduated from the Toho Gakuen School of Music. There he also studied conducting with Morihiro Okabe. From 1995 onwards, with the help of an Italian government scholarship, he studied composition with Franco Donatoni and Sandro Gorli and conducting with Emilio Pomarico. After moving to Milan, Sugiyama has built a career as both a composer and conductor. He has received commissions from numerous Japanese and international institutions, including Milano Musica, the Venice Biennale, and the Suntory Hall Summer Festival. As a conductor, he has worked with renowned ensembles such as the NHK Symphony Orchestra, Tokyo Philharmonic, Orchestra RAI, Teatro Comunale di Bologna, Ensemble Modern, and Klangforum Wien. He is also dedicated to the education of young musicians and currently teaches at the Claudio Abbado Music Academy in Milan.
Self Portrait [Self-portrait] was composed in 2020, as the coronavirus pandemic swept the world, claiming numerous victims in Milan, where Sugiyama lives. In response to these circumstances, he created an unusual musical self-portrait.
This orchestral work serves as a sonic chronicle of the wars, conflicts, and social unrest that have erupted around the world over the past 50 years—from 1969, the year Sugiyama was born, to 2020, when the piece was completed. His compositional approach is as follows: First, Sugiyama quotes from Juan Bautista Cabanille's Battle Imperial, a piece he often heard as a child. After this introduction comes a long sequence of references to global conflicts. For each event, the corresponding national anthem (or, in the case of civil wars, the regional anthem) is played. Each new year is announced by a beat of a bass drum, and a collage of superimposed national anthems emerges. The anthem of the warring party under attack is always played first—in the Vietnam War, for example, the national anthem of South Vietnam is played first.
A further layer of complexity is added by the geographical division of the orchestra. The woodwinds represent countries in South Asia, Central Europe, Northern Ireland, etc.; the brass sections play the national anthems of post-Soviet states. The first violins play African anthems, the second violins those of the Arabian Peninsula, the cellos those of Indonesia, the Philippines, South Korea, China, and neighboring regions, and the double basses, finally, the Central American anthems.
Three major events—the fall of the Berlin Wall, the dissolution of the Soviet Union, and the 9/11 terrorist attacks—are treated as exceptions by marking them with tubular bell sounds. Through this complex scheme, the entire work tells the grim story of global warfare. Its dense, restless sounds reflect the upheavals in the world. The piece ends with an Italian funeral trumpet—symbolizing the daily victims of the pandemic, whose funerals in Italy were accompanied by precisely this sound.
Yuji Numano
Translation: Wieland Hoban