Contemporary Classical
Compositions
Ensemble
Contrasts et recurrences Op.64 (2026)
Group 1
(2 players)
clarinet in Bb
xylophone, wood block, temple block, cow bell, bass drum, snare drum
Group 2
(6 players)
alto flute, bass clarinet in Bb, contrabassoon, horn in f, trombone, double bass
Group 3
(1 player)
Vibraphone, tubular bells, suspended cymbal, wood block, temple block, cow bell
Group 4
(1 player)
Marimba, suspended cymbal, gong, wood block, temple block, cow bell
timing : 9'00''
(2 players)
clarinet in Bb
xylophone, wood block, temple block, cow bell, bass drum, snare drum
Group 2
(6 players)
alto flute, bass clarinet in Bb, contrabassoon, horn in f, trombone, double bass
Group 3
(1 player)
Vibraphone, tubular bells, suspended cymbal, wood block, temple block, cow bell
Group 4
(1 player)
Marimba, suspended cymbal, gong, wood block, temple block, cow bell
timing : 9'00''
A piece composed in 1987, completely serial. That is, all the parameters of the composition are constructed with series. I have wanted to redo this piece for a very long time, which I have never added to my catalog. I was 28 years old at the time and I had almost no experience in writing for ensemble. More specifically on the instrumental writing and the physical realization for the instrumentalist. I told myself (at least it seems to me) that the higher the degree of complexity, the more interesting the piece was. Today, although I sometimes still use certain methods borrowed from serial writing, a few years after Contrasts and recurrences, I had completely abandoned this type of writing. I even had the nerve at the time (1987) to send Contrasts and recurrences to IRCAM. Of course and rightly so, the piece was refused. I admit that it took me several years to understand why.
In April 2026 I therefore reopened the Contrasts and Recurrences to work on its digital score. I looked at this piece with the eyes of the 67-year-old man I became. At first glance I changed the general rhythmic signature to 4/4, which was more than enough for this piece. I kept the initial tempo. I found that the percussions were far too abundant. I was surely influenced by the pieces of the time, that often used a multitude of percussion instruments. Today, I do not find any meaning in such a profusion. I have therefore considerably reduced their number and I am convinced that this has in no way degraded the composition. I then rearranged some percussion passages to make them a little more "playable". Finally, I added and sometimes rearranged some musical segments to meet my current musical sensitivity which is no longer that of 1987. I still wanted to keep the serial spirit of the composition, keeping all the original serial sequences. Some segments have been adapted in order to facilitate a more "realistic" execution. It seems to me that "the serial spirit" was preserved, rendered by scattered sounds, abrupt ruptures, powerful crescendo and decrescendo, as well as the contrast between group 1 and the rest of the ensemble.
In April 2026 I therefore reopened the Contrasts and Recurrences to work on its digital score. I looked at this piece with the eyes of the 67-year-old man I became. At first glance I changed the general rhythmic signature to 4/4, which was more than enough for this piece. I kept the initial tempo. I found that the percussions were far too abundant. I was surely influenced by the pieces of the time, that often used a multitude of percussion instruments. Today, I do not find any meaning in such a profusion. I have therefore considerably reduced their number and I am convinced that this has in no way degraded the composition. I then rearranged some percussion passages to make them a little more "playable". Finally, I added and sometimes rearranged some musical segments to meet my current musical sensitivity which is no longer that of 1987. I still wanted to keep the serial spirit of the composition, keeping all the original serial sequences. Some segments have been adapted in order to facilitate a more "realistic" execution. It seems to me that "the serial spirit" was preserved, rendered by scattered sounds, abrupt ruptures, powerful crescendo and decrescendo, as well as the contrast between group 1 and the rest of the ensemble.
score in concert pitch
