Karlheinz Stockhausen
Kontra-Punkte
Short instrumentation: 1 0 2 1 - 0 1 1 0, pno, hp, str(1 0 0 1 0)
Duration: 14'
Vorwort von: Karlheinz Stockhausen
Dedication: Doris (Stockhausen, geb. Andreae) gewidmet
Instrumentation details:
flute
clarinet in Bb
bass clarinet in Bb
bassoon
trumpet in C
trombone
piano
harp
violin
violoncello
Stockhausen - Kontra-Punkte for 10 instruments
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Work introduction
Karlheinz Stockhausen’s 1952/1953 piece Kontra-Punkte for 10 instruments is one of the key works of serial composition. “One of the basic ideas behind the piece is that all 10 instruments are initially introduced on an equal footing – with ‘punctiform’ individual tones. But during the piece individual instruments drop out one by one, while the remaining instrumental parts become progressively more continuous with one another, culminating in an enormously challenging piano solo” (Richard Toop).