New Electronic Music from Leaders of the Avant-Garde

various artists compilation - New Electronic Music from Leaders of the Avant-Garde

"I believe that the use of noise to make music will continue and increase until we reach a music produced through the aid of electrical instruments that will make available for musical purposes any and all sounds that can be heard."

This statement was made by John Cage as long ago as 1937. Yet, with a few "pre-historic" exceptions, it was not until the development of magnetic recording tape around 1950 that the fulfillment of this prophecy began to be truly realized. The establishment of tape studios in Paris, Cologne, Milan, New York and elsewhere enabled composers to create finished works directly on tape, utilizing both electronically generated signals and live sounds recorded through microphones. In both cases, the sounds could be further processed by electronic modification or tape manipulations. Henri Pousseur's "Trois visages de Liège" elegantly illustrates the refinement which can be achieved with such "classic" studio practice.

With the aid of such new musical resources, composers have pursued two increasingly divergent interests, the first leading toward the invention and discovery of "any and all sounds that can be heard," the second toward precise control over musical materials beyond the limits of the human performer. To facilitate such control, particularly over rhythmic problems, sophisticated programming devices, such as the RCA Music Synthesizers, the Moog Synthesizers and high-speed digital computers have been employed. Enabling the composer to specify precise values of frequency, amplitude, duration and succession of all sound events, such devices produce a completed tape composition requiring little or no editing. Milton Babbitt's "Ensembles for Synthesizer" is an eminent example of works in this genre.

To composers whose demands had already exceeded the capabilities of most instrumentalists, the elimination of the performer was most welcome, assuring a perfect "performance" every time. To others, more interested in questions of of process and change, chance and indeterminacy, plus the actions and interactions of human performers, the medium of fixed tape music seemed increasingly "deadly." Thus, in the late 1950's, a number of musicians began experimenting with "live" electronic performances. Foremost among these were John Cage (whose live electronic works actually extend back to "Imaginary Landscape No. 1", of 1939) and David Tudor. (From the liner notes by Richard Teitelbaum)

Tracklisting:

Side 1

1. John Cage - Variations II {26:02}

David Tudor - piano

Side 2

1. Milton Babbitt - Ensembles for Synthesizer {10:32}

2. Henri Pousseur - Trois visages de Liège {17:35}

I. L'Air et l'eau

II. Voix de la ville

III. Forges

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Piano Works

Milton Babbitt - Piano Works

performed by Robert Taub

From the liner notes:

The piano music of Milton Babbitt (b. 1916) plays a central role throughout his creative oeuvre. The Three Compositions for Piano dating from 1947-48 are Babbitt's first works for this medium and are the composer's first mature applications of Schoenbergian 12-tone principles. Babbitt returned to piano composition in 1956 after a decade of writing for other instruments, to create Duet, a short, charming two-part invention written for his daughter, and Semi-Simple Variations, a set of five six-measure variations on a theme which highlights six pitches.
Partitions (1957) heralds a second style period. It is very ambitious in dynamic and registral contrasts and reaches new heights of pianistic virtuosity. Post-Partitions, written for the 70th birthday of Roger Sessions, reflects another decade of sophistication. Throughout its eight closely-linked sections are moments of explosive energy as well as moments of great delicacy. In Tableaux (1973), compositional virtuosity is matched by uncompromising demands on the pianist to project intricate and rapidly unfolding contrapuntal lines over the entire range of the keyboard. Reflections (1974) is Babbitt's only work thus far for piano and synthesized electronic tape, delicately interweaving the ornately detailed tape and piano parts.
Canonical Form (1983) was "composed for and dedicated to Robert Taub" on a commission from the Fromm Foundation and the ISCM and is Babbitt's longest piano work. Canonical Form and Lagniappe (1985) are both suites of separated sections, forming a third style period of more contrapuntal lines and more transparent textures. Lagniappe is Milton Babbitt's gift to this recording. Written for this occasion, the piece receives its first performance on this disc. It is a synthesis of the compositional processes which have evolved throughout his piano works, revealing yet new modes of unifying musical elements. (Martin Brody, Robina G. Young and Robert Taub)

The music of Milton Babbitt must be played from the heart. The dazzling, highly imaginative pianism - enormous registral leaps, juxtaposition of dynamic extremes, highly complicated rhythms, innovative pedal techniques - always serves an intensely musical end, which (as in all great work) should be so completely mastered that the music is free to soar in performance. (Robert Taub)



Tracklisting:

1. Three Compositions {7:44}

2. Duet {0:36}

3. Semi-Simple Variations {1:15}

4. Partitions {1:54}

5. Post-Partitions {3:52}

6. Tableaux {9:35}

7. Reflections {10:22}

8. Canonical Form {11:29}

9. Lagniappe {8:56}

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Columbia-Princeton Electronic Music Center

various artists compilation - Columbia-Princeton Electronic Music Center

Originally posted on July 21, 2006

Write up by muse1453:
I bought this record at a library sale for only a dollar several years ago (to this day I still consider this the best dollar I ever spent). It opened my ears to a musical history that I was totally unaware of, and, of course, the music on this album is great as well. While the music is academic in nature (music made by academics, duh), the pieces are quite engaging and not just some dull exercise as they could have been IMHO. One could feel a sense of musical exploration taking place when listening to these tracks.

This record was released sometime in the early 60s when electronic music was still considered a new form of expression explored by mostly music professors. Electronic music was considered controversial in and out of formal music circles. Some people still seem to take an aversion to electronic music in the present. This record comes highly recommended especially for those who enjoyed Ohm: The Early Gurus of Electronic Music compilation.

The back cover has the basic information about the Columbia-Princeton Electronic Music Center: "The Columbia-Princeton Electronic Music Center was established in 1959 with the assistance of a grant from the Rockefeller Foundation. The Center provides three studios for composition and research in the electronic production of music. One studio houses the RCA Electronic Sound Synthesizer and related recording equipment, the others contain specialized equipment for sound generation and modification. Earlier grants from the Foundation made through Barnard College, allotment of space and other assistance by Columbia University have enabled Otto Luening and Vladimir Ussachevsky of Columbia to conduct joint experiments in the medium, with technical assistance from Mr. Peter Mauzey. The Center is jointly administered by Otto Luening and Vladimir Ussachevsky of Columbia University and Milton Babbitt and Roger Sessions of Princeton University."

Tracklisting:

Side 1

1. Bulent Arel - Stereo Electronic Music No. 1 {10:09}

2. Halim El-Dabh - Leiyla and the Poet {5:08}

3. Vladimir Ussachevsky - Creation - Prologue {7:45}

Side 2

4. Milton Babbitt - Composition For Synthesizer {10:19}

5. Mario Davidovsky - Electronic Study No. 1 {5:32}

6. Otto Luening - Gargoyles {9:06}

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