THE ELECTRONIC WORKS OF GYÖRGY LIGETI AND THEIR ...

About the Form
In the following analysis, I will introduce Ligeti’s large-scale design for the piece,
define sectional boundaries within the first half, based on distinct changes in texture,
density, and type of material, including the levels of compact to diffuse sounds introduced
above. Yet a number of connections between individual sections within these parts make
other conceptions of form possible. In particular, the prime plus retrograde construction
forms a coherent, arching middle section set apart by sparser material on either side; this
lends itself to a division into three parts rather than two, and as the analysis continues, I
will pay specific attention to these competing conceptions of form. Scholars such as
Herman Sabbe and Diane Luchese have identified similar polyvalent forms in other of
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Ligeti’s pieces. Luchese refers to “several underlying structural principles” in Volumina
(1961-62), and Sabbe discusses the importance of competing, asynchronized layers in
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what he terms the “the Polyrhythm of Form” in Ligeti’s later music. Thus identifying
Glissandi as an early example of this trend is significant for the later portion of this study,
and is a point I will return to in the final chapter.
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Glissandi runs to 7'33" and is a mono piece, realized in only one channel ; as Ligeti
describes in the quote above, the piece proceeds to a midpoint (3'46.5"), and then the
original material repeats in combination with its retrograde–a feat achieved quite simply by
copying and reversing the magnetic tape. While this doubling of material should result in
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Luchese, Diane. “Levels of Infrastructure in Ligeti’s Volumina.,” Sonus, vol. 9, 38.
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Sabbe, Herman. György Ligeti. Musik-Konzepte 53, Heinz-Klaus Metzger and Rainer Riehn, eds.
Munich, 1987, 28 and 57 ff.
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Ligeti’s sketches make reference to his planning a multi-channel version, but there is no evidence that
this was ever realized.
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