Iannis Xenakis - Waarg (Audio + Full Score)

Iannis Xenakis - Waarg, for 13 instruments (1988) Contempoensemble Conductor - Mauro Ceccanti Xenakis enjoyed a long and fruitful relationship with the London Sinfonietta. He composed Phlegra for the ensemble in 1975, and completed his fourth commission for them in 1997 with O-Mega. Waarg (1988) was a follow-up to the highly successful Thalleïn, premiered in 1985. While the earlier piece is characterized by a particular brilliance, Waarg is dense and rather sombre; the title itself means “work,“ perhaps an indication of its serious tone. While certainly challenging from a technical standpoint, Waarg is more orchestral than chamber-like, indicating an aesthetic shift in the years following Thalleïn. Waarg’s opening features the winds in a sustained expansion from a single pitch to a chord. The emphasis on tone color is striking as the central note is passed from one instrument to another. The focus thereafter is on harmonic color, though instrumental timbre continues to play a role as Xenakis often treats t