The thematic material of Arcana (1925-27) for orchestra - the score of which is prefaced by a quotation from the sixteenth-century Swiss physician and alchemist Paracelsus - is derived from the varied repetition of a handful of motifs including a rising tritone/rising tone figure also used in IntÃ©grales. The premiÃ¨re was given at the Academy of Music in Philadelphia on 8th April 1927 conducted by Leopold Stokowski. The title of Octandre (1923) refers to it's scoring for an octet of flute, clarinet, oboe, bassoon, horn, trumpet, trombone and double bass ('octandrous' refers to a flower having eight stamens). The only work of VarÃ¨se to follow a traditional division of movements, namely Assez lent, TrÃ¨s vif et nerveux, AnimÃ© et jubilatoire, it grows out of the material stated by the oboe in the opening bars, with VarÃ¨se treating the octet essentially as a timbral pool from which he extracts textures of a quite startling originality.

Tracklist:

Arcana
Octandre: Assez Lent
Octandre: Tres Vif Et Nerveaux
Octandre: Grave
Offrandes: Chanson De Le-haut
Offrandes: La Croix Du Sud
Integrales
Deserts: Untitled Movt
Deserts: First Electronic Interpolation (Beginning)
Deserts: First Electronic Interpolation (Conclusion)
Deserts: Second Electronic Interpolation (Beginning)
Deserts: Second Electronic Interpolation (Conclusion)
Deserts: Third Electronic Interpolation (Beginning)
Deserts: Third Electronic Interpolation (Conclusion)

UPC: 636943482025
Label: Naxos
Release Date: 8.21.01
Format: CD

G. ROCHBERG - Arcana / Integrales / Deserts (CD)