Wolfgang Rihm
Chiffre II
Short instrumentation: 1 1 1 1 - 1 1 1 0 - perc(1-2), pno, str(1 1 1 1 1)
Duration: 14'
Instrumentation details:
flute (+picc)
oboe (+c.a)
clarinet in Bb (+cl(Eb)
bass cl(Bb))
bassoon (+cbsn)
horn in F
trumpet in C (+picc.tpt)
trombone
1st, 2nd percussion (version for 2 players)
percussion (version for 1 player)
piano
1st violin
2nd violin
viola
violoncello
contrabass
Rihm - Chiffre II for 14 players
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Wolfgang Rihm
Rihm: Chiffre IIOrchestration: für 14 Spieler
Type: Studienpartitur (Sonderanfertigung)
Wolfgang Rihm
Rihm: Chiffre IIOrchestration: für 14 Spieler
Type: Partitur (Sonderanfertigung)
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Audio preview
Work introduction
The subtitle of this piece could be a nod in the direction of Varèse’s Arcana (where it appears as an agogic); it seems to be a continuation of the thought-process of Chiffre I. The furioso piano returns, although it is now juxtaposed with an ensemble twice as large which (in contrast to Chiffre I) is not suppressible; in fact, it occasionally manages to subdue the raging.
Chiffre II is highly dramatic music: eruptive, with sudden, short cries and long, very still passages when, from nowhere, the bass drums burst forth into ffff and the music’s continuity is repeatedly interrupted by silences.
Translation: Grant Chorley