Stockhausen's Musical Shape

Karlheinz Stockhausen's music defies convention, and§hence §standard analytical techniques are not enough to§approach a full §understanding of this colorful and profound§repertory. This book §provides a new pictorial approach to illuminate§structures of spatial §designs on the surface and at deeper structural§levels within two of §Stockhausen's masterworks, chosen as examples of his§formative §and mature styles respectively: Gruppen (1957) and§Oktophonie §(1991). In both his acoustic and electronic§compositions, §Stockhausen found ways of creating sounds that§seemingly fly §around the performance space. This study addresses§just how these §"magic spots" of aural illusion were crafted in these§two works, and, §with Gruppen in particular, assesses the importance§of the sole §electric guitar part in the three-orchestra texture§and shows how §Stockhausen wove his own signature into the row§design (a §discovery that has so far gone unnoticed by§scholars). This book §should be especially interesting to music theorists,§composers, §guitarists, those who enjoy post-tonal music or code§breaking, and §anyone who follows the career of the great German master §composer Karlheinz Stockhausen. Karlheinz Stockhausen''s music defies convention, and§hence §standard analytical techniques are not enough to§approach a full §understanding of this colorful and profound§repertory. This book §provides a new pictorial approach to illuminate§structures of spatial §designs on the surface and at deeper structural§levels within two of §Stockhausen''s masterworks, chosen as examples of his§formative §and mature styles respectively: Gruppen (1957) and§Oktophonie §(1991). In both his acoustic and electronic§compositions, §Stockhausen found ways of creating sounds that§seemingly fly §around the performance space. This study addresses§just how these §"magic spots" of aural illusion were crafted in these§two works, and, §with Gruppen in particular, assesses the importance§of the sole §electric guitar part in the three-orchestra texture§and shows how §Stockhausen wove his own signature into the row§design (a §discovery that has so far gone unnoticed by§scholars). This book §should be especially interesting to music theorists,§composers, §guitarists, those who enjoy post-tonal music or code§breaking, and §anyone who follows the career of the great German master §composer Karlheinz Stockhausen.