''Kontra-Punkte'' (Counter-Points, or Against-Points) is a composition for ten instruments by

Karlheinz Stockhausen Karlheinz Stockhausen (; 22 August 1928 – 5 December 2007) was a German composer, widely acknowledged by critics as one of the most important but also controversial composers of the 20th-century classical music, 20th and early 21st-century ...

which resolves contrasts among six instrumental

timbre In music, timbre ( ), also known as tone color or tone quality (from psychoacoustics), is the perceived sound quality of a musical note, sound or musical tone, tone. Timbre distinguishes different types of sound production, such as choir voice ...

s, as well as extremes of

note value In music notation, a note value indicates the relative duration of a note, using the texture or shape of the '' notehead'', the presence or absence of a ''stem'', and the presence or absence of ''flags/ beams/hooks/tails''. Unmodified note valu ...

s and dynamic levels, into a homogeneous ending

texture Texture may refer to: Science and technology * Surface texture, the texture means smoothness, roughness, or bumpiness of the surface of an object * Texture (roads), road surface characteristics with waves shorter than road roughness * Texture ...

. Stockhausen described it: "Counter-Points: a series of the most concealed and also the most conspicuous transformations and renewals—with no predictable end. The same thing is never heard twice. Yet there is a distinct feeling of never falling out of an unmistakable construction of the utmost homogeneity. An underlying force that holds things together—related proportions: a structure. Not the same ''Gestalten'' in a changing light. But rather this: various ''Gestalten'' in the same light, that permeates everything."

History

The first, untitled version, written in 1952–53, was a sparse-textured, " punctual" composition scored for

flute The flute is a family of classical music instrument in the woodwind group. Like all woodwinds, flutes are aerophones, meaning they make sound by vibrating a column of air. However, unlike woodwind instruments with reeds, a flute is a reedless ...

, E-flat clarinet,

contrabass clarinet The contrabass clarinet (also pedal clarinet, after the pedals of pipe organs) and contra-alto clarinet are the two largest members of the clarinet family that are in common usage. Modern contrabass clarinets are transposing instruments pitc ...

contrabassoon The contrabassoon, also known as the double bassoon, is a larger version of the bassoon, sounding an octave lower. Its technique is similar to its smaller cousin, with a few notable differences. Differences from the bassoon The reed is consi ...

trumpet The trumpet is a brass instrument commonly used in classical and jazz ensembles. The trumpet group ranges from the piccolo trumpet—with the highest register in the brass family—to the bass trumpet, pitched one octave below the standard ...

contrabass tuba The tuba (; ) is the lowest-pitched musical instrument in the brass family. As with all brass instruments, the sound is produced by lip vibrationa buzzinto a mouthpiece. It first appeared in the mid-19th century, making it one of the ne ...

, piano four hands,

harp The harp is a stringed musical instrument that has a number of individual strings running at an angle to its soundboard; the strings are plucked with the fingers. Harps can be made and played in various ways, standing or sitting, and in orche ...

violin The violin, sometimes known as a ''fiddle'', is a wooden chordophone (string instrument) in the violin family. Most violins have a hollow wooden body. It is the smallest and thus highest-pitched instrument (soprano) in the family in regular ...

, and

double bass The double bass (), also known simply as the bass () (or #Terminology, by other names), is the largest and lowest-pitched Bow (music), bowed (or plucked) string instrument in the modern orchestra, symphony orchestra (excluding unorthodox addit ...

. This score was almost immediately rejected by the composer, who created a new version in the spring of 1953 for flute,

clarinet The clarinet is a musical instrument in the woodwind family. The instrument has a nearly cylindrical bore and a flared bell, and uses a single reed to produce sound. Clarinets comprise a family of instruments of differing sizes and pitches ...

in A,

bass clarinet The bass clarinet is a musical instrument of the clarinet family. Like the more common soprano B clarinet, it is usually pitched in B (meaning it is a transposing instrument on which a written C sounds as B), but it plays notes an octave bel ...

, bassoon, trumpet,

trombone The trombone (german: Posaune, Italian, French: ''trombone'') is a musical instrument in the Brass instrument, brass family. As with all brass instruments, sound is produced when the player's vibrating lips cause the Standing wave, air column ...

piano The piano is a stringed keyboard instrument in which the strings are struck by wooden hammers that are coated with a softer material (modern hammers are covered with dense wool felt; some early pianos used leather). It is played using a keyboa ...

(one player), harp, violin, and

cello The cello ( ; plural ''celli'' or ''cellos'') or violoncello ( ; ) is a Bow (music), bowed (sometimes pizzicato, plucked and occasionally col legno, hit) string instrument of the violin family. Its four strings are usually intonation (music), t ...

. This version has the distinction of being "Nr. 1" in the composer's catalog of works, although the '' Klavierstücke I–IV'', designated "Nr. 2", were actually composed in the previous year. The hyphenated title signifies a "counter-action" against the punctual style currently in vogue in the early 1950s, an action embodied in the composition itself as a process of transforming dissociated "points" into cohesive "groups" of notes, and therefore from an essentially static condition to an audibly dynamic one. The title also implies a criticism of Stockhausen's own earlier composition ''

Punkte ''Punkte'' (Points) is an orchestral composition by Karlheinz Stockhausen, given the work number ½ in his catalogue of works. History ''Punkte'' originated as a punctual orchestral work which was begun in September in Hamburg and had reached a ...

'', as well as of his friend

Pierre Boulez Pierre Louis Joseph Boulez (; 26 March 1925 – 5 January 2016) was a French composer, conductor and writer, and the founder of several musical institutions. He was one of the dominant figures of post-war Western classical music. Born in Mont ...

's 1951 work ''

Polyphonie X ''Polyphonie X'' (1950–51) is a three- movement composition by Pierre Boulez for eighteen instruments divided into seven groups, with a duration of roughly fifteen minutes. Following the work's premiere, Boulez withdrew the score, stating that i ...

''—a criticism for which Boulez seems to have forgiven Stockhausen. ''Kontra-Punkte'' was first performed during the

ISCM World Music Days The ISCM World Music Days is an annual contemporary music festival organized by the International Society for Contemporary Music, originally created in 1923 as the ISCM Festival as a means to support the most advanced composition tendencies.

Cologne Cologne ( ; german: Köln ; ksh, Kölle ) is the largest city of the German western States of Germany, state of North Rhine-Westphalia (NRW) and the List of cities in Germany by population, fourth-most populous city of Germany with 1.1 m ...

on 26 May 1953 by members of the WDR Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Hermann Scherchen. This performance, however, was only of roughly the first two-thirds of the work, owing to lack of sufficient time for the pianist to prepare the extremely difficult closing part. Later that same year, Scherchen conducted the first complete performance on a

Domaine musical The Domaine musical was a concert society established by Pierre Boulez in Paris, which was active from 1954 to 1973. Composers represented at its concerts included Boulez, Karlheinz Stockhausen, Olivier Messiaen, Luciano Berio, John Cage, Sylva ...

concert in Paris. One review of the 1953 (partial) premiere reported that Scherchen immediately repeated the piece because, shortly after the beginning of the first performance, the pianist had gotten two bars behind, despite being assisted by the composer "who from time to time played a note obviously not within the capacity of ten fingers but required by the score". Somewhat confusingly, an earlier, orchestral work by Stockhausen was titled "Kontrapunkte" (without the hyphen: "Counterpoints"). This work, suppressed by the composer at the time on grounds that it was unplayable, was drastically recomposed in 1962 and issued under the title ''

'' (Points), by which name the original work is also now called.

Analysis

"A 'punctual' ensemble style using ten soloists divided into six sound groups ((1) flute-bassoon, (2) clarinet–bass clarinet, (3) trumpet-trombone, (4) piano, (5) harp, (6) violin-violoncello) is transformed irregularly but steadily into a soloistic style articulated by 'groups', gradually focussing on the piano part". This version adds progressively longer insertions of denser note groups, often in single instruments, while at the same time gradually replacing more and more long notes with groups of rapid, shorter ones in a technique called Ausmultiplikation. This gradual erosion of the originally sparse texture, reflected in the hyphenated title (meaning "Against Points"), complements three parallel processes already present in the first version: (1) the heterogeneous timbres of the full ensemble are gradually reduced to the "monochrome" of the solo piano; (2) widely fluctuating durations reduce to similar values; (3) wide-ranging dynamics reduce to a generally soft level. This unidirectional process has been compared on the one hand to that of Maurice Ravel's '' Boléro'', and on the other to Haydn's "Farewell" Symphony. Countless minor changes have been introduced in subsequent revisions, the last of which, in January 2004, replaced the A clarinet with the B-flat instrument.

Discography

In chronological order of recording. * ''Les Concerts du Domaine Musical: IV^e Concert—Saison 1956''.

Anton Webern Anton Friedrich Wilhelm von Webern (3 December 188315 September 1945), better known as Anton Webern (), was an Austrian composer and conductor whose music was among the most radical of its milieu in its sheer concision, even aphorism, and stead ...

: Symphonie op. 21; Deux Lieder, op. 8; Quatre Lieder, op. 13.

Luigi Nono Luigi Nono (; 29 January 1924 – 8 May 1990) was an Italian avant-garde composer of classical music. Biography Early years Nono, born in Venice, was a member of a wealthy artistic family; his grandfather was a notable painter. Nono beg ...

: ''Incontri''. Karlheinz Stockhausen: ''Kontra-Punkte''.

: ''Le marteau sans maitre''. Solistes du Domaine Musical; Pierre Boulez, cond. LP recording, 1 sound disc: 33⅓ rpm, monaural, 30 cm. Series: Présence de la musique contemporaine: Serie artistique. Vega C 30 A 66.

aris Aris or ARIS may refer to: People * Aris (surname) Given name * Aris Alexandrou, Greek writer * Aris Brimanis, ice hockey player * Aris Christofellis, Greek male soprano * Aris Gavelas, Greek sprinter * Aris Howard, Former President of the Jama ...

Vega, 1956. Reissued on CD1 of: ''Pierre Boulez: Le Domaine Musical, 1956–1967''. Vol. 1. CD recording, 5 sound discs: digital, mono, stereo, 12 cm. Accord 476 9209 (set): 476 8858, 476 8859, 476 8860, 476 8861, 476 9210.

rance Rance may refer to: Places * Rance (river), northwestern France * Rancé, a commune in eastern France, near Lyon * Ranče, a small settlement in Slovenia * Rance, Wallonia, part of the municipality of Sivry-Rance ** Rouge de Rance, a Devonian ...

Accord; Universal Music France, 2006. * ''The New Music''. Karlheinz Stockhausen: ''Kontra-Punkte'';

Krzysztof Penderecki Krzysztof Eugeniusz Penderecki (; 23 November 1933 – 29 March 2020) was a Polish composer and conductor. His best known works include ''Threnody to the Victims of Hiroshima'', Symphony No. 3, his '' St Luke Passion'', '' Polish Requiem'', ' ...

: ''

Threnody to the Victims of Hiroshima (''Threnody to the Victims of Hiroshima for 52 string instruments'') , other_name = , year = , catalogue = , period = Contemporary, postmodernism , genre = Sonorism, avant-gar ...

'';

Earle Brown Earle Brown (December 26, 1926 – July 2, 2002) was an American composer who established his own formal and notational systems. Brown was the creator of "open form," a style of musical construction that has influenced many composers since� ...

: ''Available Forms I'';

Henri Pousseur Henri Léon Marie-Thérèse Pousseur (23 June 1929 – 6 March 2009) was a Belgian classical composer, teacher, and music theorist. Biography Pousseur was born in Malmedy and studied at the Academies of Music in Liège and in Brussels from 1947 t ...

: ''Rimes pour différentes sources sonores''.

Frederic Rzewski Frederic Anthony Rzewski ( ; April 13, 1938 – June 26, 2021) was an American composer and pianist, considered to be one of the most important American composer-pianists of his time. His major compositions, which often incorporate social an ...

, piano; Members of the RAI Rome Orchestra;

Bruno Maderna Bruno Maderna (21 April 1920 – 13 November 1973) was an Italian conductor and composer. Life Maderna was born Bruno Grossato in Venice but later decided to take the name of his mother, Caterina Carolina Maderna.Interview with Maderna‘s th ...

, cond. LP recording, 1 sound disc: analog, 33⅓ rpm, stereo, 30 cm. RCA Victrola VICS 1239. New York, N.Y.: RCA Victrola, 1967. Reissued as Musica Nova vol. 1. LP recording. RCA 940044.

RCA France, 1969. Also issued as disc 2 of 3-LP set: La Musica Nuova. LP recording, 3 sound discs: analog, 33⅓ rpm, stereo, 30 cm. RCA Italiana SLD-61005;

taly Taly (russian: Талый) is a rural locality (a settlement) in Alexandrovskoye Urban Settlement, Alexandrovsky District, Perm Krai Perm Krai (russian: Пе́рмский край, r=Permsky kray, p=ˈpʲɛrmskʲɪj ˈkraj, ''Permsky krai'', , ' ...

RCA Italiana,

960s The 960s decade ran from January 1, 960, to December 31, 969. Significant people * Abd al-Rahman III caliph of Córdoba * Otto I of Holy Roman empire * Al-Muti caliph of Baghdad * Al-Hakam II caliph of Córdoba * Al-Mu'izz li-Din Allah of Fatim ...

Reissued on CD: 1 sound disc, stereo, 12 cm. Sony 49996 (88765499962). New York: Sony Music Entertainment, 2013. * Stockhausen: ''

Kreuzspiel (Crossplay) is a composition by Karlheinz Stockhausen written for oboe, bass clarinet, piano and four percussionists in 1951 (it was later revised for just three percussionists, along with other changes). It is assigned the number 1/7 in the comp ...

'', ''Kontra-Punkte'' ''

Zeitmaße ''Zeitmaße'' (; German for "Time Measures") is a chamber-music work for five woodwinds (flute, oboe, cor anglais, clarinet, and bassoon) composed in 1955–1956 by German composer Karlheinz Stockhausen; it is Number 5 in the composer's catalog. ...

'', and '' Adieu''.

London Sinfonietta The London Sinfonietta is an English contemporary chamber orchestra founded in 1968 and based in London. The ensemble has headquarters at Kings Place and is Resident Orchestra at the Southbank Centre. Since its inaugural concert in 1968—givi ...

(Sebastian Bell, flute;

Antony Pay Antony Pay (born 21 February 1945 in London) is a classical clarinettist. After gaining a place with the National Youth Orchestra of Great Britain, with whom he performed the Mozart clarinet concerto at the age of 16, he studied at the Royal Acad ...

, clarinet; Roger Fallows, bass clarinet; William Waterhouse, bassoon; John Miller, trumpet; David Purser, trombone; John Constable, piano; Elizabeth Fletcher, harp; Marcia Crayford, violin; Christopher van Kampen, cello); Karlheinz Stockhausen, cond. (''Kontra-Punkte'' recorded in the CTS Studio, Wembley (London), 8 July 1973) LP recording, 1 sound disc: 33⅓ rpm, monaural, 30 cm. DGG LP 2530 443. amburg Deutsche Grammophon, 1974. Reissued together with ''Zeitmaße'' and ''Adieu'' from this same LP, with the addition of ''Stop'' (1965) from DGG LP 2530 442, on Stockhausen Complete Edition CD 4. Kürten: Stockhausen-Verlag, 2002. * ''Karlheinz Stockhausen: Kontra-Punkte, Refrain, Zeitmaße, Schlagtrio''. The

ensemble recherche The ensemble recherche is a German classical music ensemble of nine soloists, especially dedicated to contemporary music. Founded in Freiburg im Breisgau in 1985, they premiered some 500 works. They were awarded the Schneider-Schott Music Prize ...

(Martin Fahlenbock, flute; Shizuyo Oka, clarinet; Mario Kopf, bassoon; Uwe Möckel, bass clarinet; Markus Schwind, trumpet; Andrew Digby, trombone; Jean-Pierre Collot, piano; Beate Anton, harp; Melisa Mellinger, violin; Åsa Åkerberg, cello; in the other works: Jaime González, oboe; Florian Hasel, cor anglais; Klaus-Steffes Holländer, celesta;

Christian Dierstein Christian Dierstein (born 1965) is a German percussionist and academic teacher. He has performed internationally as a soloist and as a regular chamber music player with ensemble recherche and Trio Accanto, performing several world premieres. He ...

and Mariko Nishioka, percussion), , cond. CD recording, 1 sound disc: digital, stereo, 12 cm. Wergo WER 6717 2. Mainz: Wergo, a division of Schott Music & Media GmbH, 2009. Disc reissued as part of ''Music Of Our Time: 50 Years: 1962–2012''. 5-CD set. Wergo 6946. Wergo, a division of Schott Music & Media GmbH, 2012.

References

Cited sources

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External links