Metastasis
Iannis Xenakis (Ιωάννης Ιάννης Ξενάκης) (May 29, 1922 – February 4, 2001) w… Read Full Bio ↴Iannis Xenakis (Ιωάννης Ιάννης Ξενάκης) (May 29, 1922 – February 4, 2001) was a Greek composer, music theorist and architect. He is commonly recognized as one of the most important post-war avant-garde composers. Xenakis pioneered the use of mathematical models such as applications of set theory, varied use of stochastic processes, game theory, etc., in music, and was also an important influence on the development of electronic music.
Xenakis was born in Braila, Romania. In 1932 his family returned to Greece, and he was educated on Spetsai and at the Athens Polytechnic, where he studied engineering. In 1947 he arrived in Paris, where he became a member of Le Corbusier's architectural team, producing his first musical work, Metastasis, only in 1954, based on the design for the surfaces of the Philips Pavilion to be built for the Brussels Exposition of 1958.
This, with its divided strings and mass effects, had an enormous influence; but in ensuing works he moved on to find mathematical and computer means of handling large numbers of events, drawing on (for example) Gaussian distribution (ST/10, Atrées), Markovian chains (Analogiques) and game theory (Duel, Stratégie). Other interests were in electronic music (Bohor, 1962), ancient Greek drama (used in several settings) and instrumental virtuosity (Herma for piano, 1964; Nomos alpha for cello, 1966). His later output, chiefly of orchestral and instrumental pieces, is large, many works from the mid-1970s onwards striking back from modernist complexity to ostinatos and modes suggestive of folk music.
Xenakis was born in Braila, Romania. In 1932 his family returned to Greece, and he was educated on Spetsai and at the Athens Polytechnic, where he studied engineering. In 1947 he arrived in Paris, where he became a member of Le Corbusier's architectural team, producing his first musical work, Metastasis, only in 1954, based on the design for the surfaces of the Philips Pavilion to be built for the Brussels Exposition of 1958.
This, with its divided strings and mass effects, had an enormous influence; but in ensuing works he moved on to find mathematical and computer means of handling large numbers of events, drawing on (for example) Gaussian distribution (ST/10, Atrées), Markovian chains (Analogiques) and game theory (Duel, Stratégie). Other interests were in electronic music (Bohor, 1962), ancient Greek drama (used in several settings) and instrumental virtuosity (Herma for piano, 1964; Nomos alpha for cello, 1966). His later output, chiefly of orchestral and instrumental pieces, is large, many works from the mid-1970s onwards striking back from modernist complexity to ostinatos and modes suggestive of folk music.
Metastasis
Iannis Xenakis Lyrics
We have lyrics for 'Metastasis' by these artists:
Amoladora Como dejé que pase a una edad temprana La enfermedad del…
Electric Fantasy 1 verso Parece que encontrado una nueva enfermedad Y me he c…
Naked Raygun I am a fetus I am a tumor I am the local…
The lyrics are frequently found in the comments by searching or by filtering for lyric videos
More Genres
No Artists Found
More Artists
Load All
No Albums Found
More Albums
Load All
No Tracks Found
Genre not found
Artist not found
Album not found
Search results not found
Song not found
TenorCantusFirmus
I'll start checking this Motet for six voices by Josquin Des Prez (1450? - 1521), "Praeter Rerum Seriem":
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ONNQJXqCgGY
Or this one by Thomas Tallis (1505? - 1585), "Spem in Alium", for forty Voices in eight Choruses of five each:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7GJq9Uf46FU
As a general rule, the more the Voices, the easiest is for the "modern" ear to pick up the similarities in the use of the "Texture".
Philip Goddard - Composer
Unlike so many others, I myself have always been deeply touched and moved (beyond the arena of cheap everyday emotions) by a fair number of the works of Xenakis - mostly earlier ones, and including this truly unique creation. I 'discovered' Xenakis in 1969, having previously dismissed him and anything he composed as beyond-the-pale rubbish because I'd read that his music was modernistic to the extent that he used computers in some of his composition work. So musically broad-minded was I then! :-)
What broke my (then) little stupidity over that was my listening to some foreign classical music station on the radio, and hearing a modernistic tumult of orchestral sounds, with some of the sound processed to give varying degrees of distance effect. My immediate response was to reach for the tuning knob to get rid of that 'rubbish' - but my hand couldn't turn that knob, for, despite a strong embarrassment at continuing to listen, I had to admit to myself that I was transfixed by that picture-painting of some sort of cosmic immensity.
In the foreign language announcement at the end I didn't catch the work's name, but I did catch that Xenakis was the composer, and the ORTF Orchestra was playing it. So, boy, did my big search in London record shops start, for import records (all vinyl back then)! It was great that I didn't immediately find that work, because it meant I listened to a fair number of other works of his before I found that 'holy grail' one, which was Kraanerg.
Early in that search I found Metastasis, and it's every bit as riveting for me today (listening to it here after leaving it alone for quite some years), and its purity and delicacy of form brings tears to my eyes.
Although none of my own compositions sound like Xenakis, I've always had a deep intuition that his whole approach has had some deep, unseen extremely positive influence upon my musical creativity.
"Let other people continue to mock and jeer, for they know not what I know", sort-of thing! :-)
raiu0009
When I learned about musicians such as Xenakis, Penderecki, and Ligeti, and listened to their music, I learned that not all music exists to please everyone, and, in many cases it's not even meant to be liked. It's meant to be listened to, studied, and thought about. It's like Cage who wanted to challenge people's conceptions of what music is supposed to be. If you happen to like it, then that's your taste, but if you don't, it doesn't mean that it "sucks".
john rowland
It might
In my humble opinion, 12-TET is lame.
@john rowland Might? No, must.
The Carnomeleon
This sucks
James Scott
However, Penderecki and Ligeti can be liked, and I know this because I like them. Xenakis is different because it is more mathematical than musical, and I so far don't like it,
CantataNoir
@James Scott You can try his choral works, they are much more accessible
Garegin
what's interesting is not that it's "atonal" or doesn't have riffs or song structures, but that it was darn catchy when it came out. Radio stations would play this repeatedly and it was instantly recognizable across the world.
Xenakis- making dissonance popular with the kids since 1960!
Mr.Tomski
It was popular because it was different.
The situation is almost the same with Marina Abramovic. If it is something that will 'cause some waves, there will always be an audience of pseudo-intelectuals who will say that this is one of the best things that was ever created
KMD
It was popular (i.e. played on radio stations) because the CIA was laundering tons of money into funding the creation and dissemination of avant garde music as part of its cultural war against the Soviets.
Anna KW
Kris Magnuson that's possible, god bless 'em