Pierre Boulez's Le Marteau sans Maitre

08/10/2011 10 min

Listen "Pierre Boulez's Le Marteau sans Maitre"

Episode Synopsis

Sir Harrison Birtwistle singles out Pierre Boulez's 1950s cycle for voice and mixed ensemble, and describes encountering the score for the first time, while Paul Griffiths explains how the composer employed total serialism and a radical new approach to instrumentation in illuminating the fleeting, surrealist poetry of Rene Char.