THE ELECTRONIC WORKS OF GYÖRGY LIGETI AND THEIR ...

material, C filtering out material from B and D introducing a counterpoint of two
individual sine tones. Section E reintroduces noise and reverberation to this texture, and
Section F continues to build up combinations of varying materials to the midpoint, which
is the densest point of the piece.
Analysis of Sections
The following analysis proceeds through the first sections–up to the midpoint–in
detail, focusing on how material is used within each section, and what divides one section
from another, so that their characteristic materials and shapes are clear and recognizable
when encountered in their filtered and/or retrograded forms later in the piece. This will
also draw out certain sections which share material and the connections which exist
between them. From the midpoint on, I will focus on areas that are changed from the
original form and how the concurrence of material from previously disparate sections
mandates a recontextualization of the whole.
The first half of the piece builds up material in three stages. The first stage of
accretion corresponds to Section A, the second to Section B, and the third, a more
gradual and segmented accretion, corresponds to Sections C-F. These are arranged
according to a series of durations which creates an exponential feeling of growth through
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these sections. In Ligeti’s sketches, these are described with roman numerals; I have
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All of the original sketches, which are the basis for many of the examples transcribed below, are held in
the György Ligeti Collection of the Paul Sacher Foundation in Basel.
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