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Gruppen (Stockhausen)
Encyclopedia
Gruppen for three orchestra
s (1955–57) is amongst the best-known compositions
of German composer Karlheinz Stockhausen
, and is Work Number 6 in the composer's catalog of works. Gruppen is "a landmark in 20th-century music . . . probably the first work of the post-war generation of composers in which technique and imagination combine on the highest level to produce an undisputable masterpiece" (Smalley 1967, 794).
prevented him from starting right away. In August and September, he took the opportunity to retreat to an inexpensive rented room in the attic of a parsonage in Paspels
, Switzerland
, recommended to him by a colleague, Paul Gredinger. Surrounded by the splendour of the Graubünder alps, he created the entire plan of Gruppen, "with a completely new conception of musical time" (Stockhausen and Frisius 1989, 320). The surroundings provided more than just a conducive environment for work.
Originally the work was to have been for multi-channel electronic music with large orchestra, with metrically indeterminate parts for the orchestra. Once having decided to divide the orchestra into three parts, each with its own conductor, Stockhausen gave up the electronic sounds and incorporated some of what had previously been thought of as electronic music into the orchestra. The indeterminate tempos also proved impractical, and were dropped after a few experimental pages of score had been written out (Kurtz 1992, 79–80).
Upon returning to Cologne, Stockhausen resumed work on Gesang der Jünglinge and then composed the wind quintet Zeitmaße
and Klavierstück XI
, before turning to working-out the details of Gruppen, which occupied him for all of 1957. The premiere of the work took place in the Rheinsaal of the Kölner Messe in Köln-Deutz, as part of the WDR's concert series Musik der Zeit, on 24 March 1958 with the Cologne Radio Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Stockhausen (orchestra I), Bruno Maderna
(orchestra II), and Pierre Boulez
(orchestra III). The score is dedicated to Herbert Eimert
, director at that time of the WDR electronic music studio (Stockhausen 1971, 22).
, which are deployed in a horseshoe shape to the left, front, and right of the audience. The spatial separation was principally motivated by the compositional requirement of keeping simultaneously played yet musically separate passages distinct from one another (Kurtz 1992, 80), but led to some orgiastic passages in which a single musical process passes from one orchestra to another.
The title refers to the work's construction in 174 units, mainly composed in what Stockhausen terms "groups"—cohesive groupings of notes unified through one or more common characteristics (dynamics, instrumental color, register, etc.): "a particular number of notes which are joined, by means of related proportions, into a superordinate experiential quality (namely, the group). The various groups in a composition have various proportional features—various structures—but they are interrelated in that the properties of one group may only be understood by comparing them in degree of relationship with the other groups" (Stockhausen 1963a, 63). This category is contrasted with the "punctual
" style of early Darmstadt
serialism
, which nevertheless also occurs in Gruppen, along with a third category of "collective" or "statistical" swarms or crowds, too dense for the listener to be able to accurately distinguish individual notes or their order of succession (Stockhausen 1963c, 250–51). Consequently, the importance of individual notes is relatively low, so that sonority, density, speed, dynamics, and direction of movement become the main features for the listener (Smalley 1967, 795).
Nonetheless, a traditional twelve-tone row is used as its basis:
This is a symmetrical all-interval row, in which the first half consists of the intervals of a descending major third, rising perfect fourth, descending minor third, descending minor second, and ascending major second. The second half consists of the retrograde inversion of the first half, transposed by a tritone (Misch 1998, 161). However, Stockhausen does not exploit the specific twelve-tone compositional applications of such a row, which suggests that either Stockhausen was not interested in or did not know about them (Harvey 1975, 57).
Many of the conceptual bases of the work are explained in Stockhausen's famous article, "… How Time Passes …" (Stockhausen 1963b). In this essay, Stockhausen developed a serial organizational principle at the center of which stood the concept of a twelve-step duration series possessing the same structural properties as the basic twelve-tone pitch series. This became the basis for the entire process of serial organization of Gruppen (Misch 1999, 53–54). This duration series, however, is expressed not as single units (which would correspond to single vibrations of a pitch) but rather as metronomic tempos in sufficiently long stretches of time to enable conductors and musicians to change tempo with precision. However, because the resulting "fundamental durations" are not small enough for use in the musical detail, subdivisions corresponding to the transposition of the overtones of a pitch's harmonic spectrum are used (Koenig 1968, 90–91).
Orchestra
An orchestra is a sizable instrumental ensemble that contains sections of string, brass, woodwind, and percussion instruments. The term orchestra derives from the Greek ορχήστρα, the name for the area in front of an ancient Greek stage reserved for the Greek chorus...
s (1955–57) is amongst the best-known compositions
Musical composition
Musical composition can refer to an original piece of music, the structure of a musical piece, or the process of creating a new piece of music. People who practice composition are called composers.- Musical compositions :...
of German composer Karlheinz Stockhausen
Karlheinz Stockhausen
Karlheinz Stockhausen was a German composer, widely acknowledged by critics as one of the most important but also controversial composers of the 20th and early 21st centuries. Another critic calls him "one of the great visionaries of 20th-century music"...
, and is Work Number 6 in the composer's catalog of works. Gruppen is "a landmark in 20th-century music . . . probably the first work of the post-war generation of composers in which technique and imagination combine on the highest level to produce an undisputable masterpiece" (Smalley 1967, 794).
History
Early in 1955 Stockhausen received a commission from WDR for a new orchestral composition, but his ongoing work on Gesang der JünglingeGesang der Jünglinge
Gesang der Jünglinge is a noted electronic music work by Karlheinz Stockhausen. It was realized in 1955–56 at the Westdeutscher Rundfunk studio in Cologne and is Work Number 8 in the composer's catalog of works...
prevented him from starting right away. In August and September, he took the opportunity to retreat to an inexpensive rented room in the attic of a parsonage in Paspels
Paspels
Paspels is a municipality in the district of Hinterrhein in the Swiss canton of Graubünden.-History:Paspels is first mentioned in 1237 as in villa Pascuals though the original record no longer exists. In 1246 it was mentioned as de Pascuals.-Geography:Paspels has an area, , of...
, Switzerland
Switzerland
Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....
, recommended to him by a colleague, Paul Gredinger. Surrounded by the splendour of the Graubünder alps, he created the entire plan of Gruppen, "with a completely new conception of musical time" (Stockhausen and Frisius 1989, 320). The surroundings provided more than just a conducive environment for work.
in Gruppen … whole envelopes of rhythmic blocks are exact lines of mountains that I saw in Paspels in Switzerland right in front of my little window. Many of the time spectra, which are represented by superimpositions of different rhythmic layers—of different speeds in each layer—their envelope which describes the increase and decrease of the number of layers, their shape, so to speak, the shape of the time field, are the curves of the mountain's contour which I saw when I looked out the window. (Cott 1973, 141)
Originally the work was to have been for multi-channel electronic music with large orchestra, with metrically indeterminate parts for the orchestra. Once having decided to divide the orchestra into three parts, each with its own conductor, Stockhausen gave up the electronic sounds and incorporated some of what had previously been thought of as electronic music into the orchestra. The indeterminate tempos also proved impractical, and were dropped after a few experimental pages of score had been written out (Kurtz 1992, 79–80).
Upon returning to Cologne, Stockhausen resumed work on Gesang der Jünglinge and then composed the wind quintet Zeitmaße
Zeitmaße
Zeitmaße for five woodwinds is a chamber-music work by German composer Karlheinz Stockhausen, and is Number 5 in the composer's catalog...
and Klavierstück XI
Klavierstücke (Stockhausen)
The Klavierstücke constitute a series of nineteen compositions by German composer Karlheinz Stockhausen.Stockhausen has said the Klavierstücke "are my drawings"...
, before turning to working-out the details of Gruppen, which occupied him for all of 1957. The premiere of the work took place in the Rheinsaal of the Kölner Messe in Köln-Deutz, as part of the WDR's concert series Musik der Zeit, on 24 March 1958 with the Cologne Radio Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Stockhausen (orchestra I), Bruno Maderna
Bruno Maderna
Bruno Maderna was an Italian conductor and composer. For the last ten years of his life he lived in Germany and eventually became a citizen of that country.-Biography:...
(orchestra II), and Pierre Boulez
Pierre Boulez
Pierre Boulez is a French composer of contemporary classical music, a pianist, and a conductor.-Early years:Boulez was born in Montbrison, Loire, France. As a child he began piano lessons and demonstrated aptitude in both music and mathematics...
(orchestra III). The score is dedicated to Herbert Eimert
Herbert Eimert
Herbert Eimert was a German music theorist, musicologist, journalist, music critic, editor, radio producer, and composer.-Life:...
, director at that time of the WDR electronic music studio (Stockhausen 1971, 22).
Material and form
A large orchestra of 109 players is divided into three orchestral units, each with its own conductorConducting
Conducting is the art of directing a musical performance by way of visible gestures. The primary duties of the conductor are to unify performers, set the tempo, execute clear preparations and beats, and to listen critically and shape the sound of the ensemble...
, which are deployed in a horseshoe shape to the left, front, and right of the audience. The spatial separation was principally motivated by the compositional requirement of keeping simultaneously played yet musically separate passages distinct from one another (Kurtz 1992, 80), but led to some orgiastic passages in which a single musical process passes from one orchestra to another.
The title refers to the work's construction in 174 units, mainly composed in what Stockhausen terms "groups"—cohesive groupings of notes unified through one or more common characteristics (dynamics, instrumental color, register, etc.): "a particular number of notes which are joined, by means of related proportions, into a superordinate experiential quality (namely, the group). The various groups in a composition have various proportional features—various structures—but they are interrelated in that the properties of one group may only be understood by comparing them in degree of relationship with the other groups" (Stockhausen 1963a, 63). This category is contrasted with the "punctual
Punctualism
Punctualism is a style of musical composition prevalent in Europe between 1949 and 1955 "whose structures are predominantly effected from tone to tone, without superordinate formal conceptions coming to bear"...
" style of early Darmstadt
Darmstadt
Darmstadt is a city in the Bundesland of Hesse in Germany, located in the southern part of the Rhine Main Area.The sandy soils in the Darmstadt area, ill-suited for agriculture in times before industrial fertilisation, prevented any larger settlement from developing, until the city became the seat...
serialism
Serialism
In music, serialism is a method or technique of composition that uses a series of values to manipulate different musical elements. Serialism began primarily with Arnold Schoenberg's twelve-tone technique, though his contemporaries were also working to establish serialism as one example of...
, which nevertheless also occurs in Gruppen, along with a third category of "collective" or "statistical" swarms or crowds, too dense for the listener to be able to accurately distinguish individual notes or their order of succession (Stockhausen 1963c, 250–51). Consequently, the importance of individual notes is relatively low, so that sonority, density, speed, dynamics, and direction of movement become the main features for the listener (Smalley 1967, 795).
Nonetheless, a traditional twelve-tone row is used as its basis:
Many of the conceptual bases of the work are explained in Stockhausen's famous article, "… How Time Passes …" (Stockhausen 1963b). In this essay, Stockhausen developed a serial organizational principle at the center of which stood the concept of a twelve-step duration series possessing the same structural properties as the basic twelve-tone pitch series. This became the basis for the entire process of serial organization of Gruppen (Misch 1999, 53–54). This duration series, however, is expressed not as single units (which would correspond to single vibrations of a pitch) but rather as metronomic tempos in sufficiently long stretches of time to enable conductors and musicians to change tempo with precision. However, because the resulting "fundamental durations" are not small enough for use in the musical detail, subdivisions corresponding to the transposition of the overtones of a pitch's harmonic spectrum are used (Koenig 1968, 90–91).
Orchestra I
- 1 Flute (doubling piccolo)
- 1 Alto flute
- 1 Oboe
- 1 English horn
- 1 Clarinet
- 1 Bassoon
- 2 Horns (high and low)
- 2 Trumpets
- 2 Trombones (2nd with bass valve)
- 1 Bass tuba
- 4 Percussionists:
- 1 Marimbaphone (5 octaves) or 4-octave marimbaphone plus xylophone for highest octave
- 1 Glockenspiel
- 5 Cowbells [Almglocken] (suspended, without clappers): pitches 1, 4, 7, 10, 13
- 4 Metal instruments, pitches 1, 4, 7, 10:
- 1 Tamtam (large)
- 3 Cymbals (large, medium, small)
- 2 Wood drums (African slotted drums, each with 2 pitches): pitches 1, 7 / 4, 10
- 4 Drums: tomtoms and/or tumbas and bongos (in the high register): pitches 1, 4, 7, 10
- 1 Snare drum (shallow jazz drum, very bright sound)
- 1 Tambourine (with either small bells or jingles)
- 1 Keyboard glockenspiel (or celesta)
- 1 Harp
- 10 Violins
- 2 Violas
- 4 Cellos
- 2 Double basses
Orchestra II
- 2 Flutes (1st doubling piccolo)
- 1 Oboe
- 1 Piccolo clarinet
- 1 Alto saxophone (doubling clarinet)
- 1 Baritone saxophone
- 1 Bassoon
- 3 Horns (1st and 3rd higher, 2nd lower)
- 2 Trumpets
- 1 Trombone
- 1 Bass trombone
- 4 Percussionists:
- 1 Vibraphone
- 14 Tubular bells
- 4 Cowbells [Almglocken] (suspended, without clappers): pitches 2, 5, 8, 11
- 4 Metal instruments, pitches 2, 5, 8, 11:
- 1 Tamtam (medium)
- 3 Cymbals (large, medium, small)
- 2 Wood drums (African slotted drums, each with 2 pitches): pitches 2, 8 / 5, 11
- 4 Drums: tomtoms and/or tumbas and bongos (in the high register)
- 1 Snare drum (shallow jazz drum, very bright sound)
- 1 Tambourine (with either small bells or jingles)
- 1 Ratchet
- 2 Triangles (1 higher, 1 lower)
- 1 [Grand] piano (without cover)
- 1 Electric guitar
- 8 Violins
- 4 Violas
- 2 Cellos
- 2 Double basses
Orchestra III
- 1 Flute (doubling Piccolo)
- 1 Oboe
- 1 English horn
- 1 Clarinet
- 1 Bass clarinet
- 1 Bassoon
- 3 Horns (1st and 3rd higher, 2nd lower)
- 2 Trumpets
- 2 Trombones (both with bass valve)
- 1 Contrabass trombone (or tuba)
- 4 Percussionists:
- 1 Xylorimba (4 octaves) [according to the list of instruments in the preface; in the score itself, a marimbaphone is specified]
- 4 Cowbells [Almglocken] (suspended, without clappers): pitches 3, 6, 9, 12
- 4 Metal instruments, pitches 3, 6, 9, 12:
- 1 Tamtam (small)
- 3 Cymbals (large, medium, small)
- 2 Wood drums (African slotted drums, each with 2 pitches): pitches 3, 9 / 6, 12
- 4 Drums: tomtoms and/or tumbas and bongos (in the high register)
- 1 Snare drum (shallow jazz drum, very bright sound)
- 1 Tambourine (with small bells or jingles)
- 1 Celesta (5 octaves)
- 1 Harp
- 8 Violins
- 4 Violas
- 2 Cellos
- 2 Double basses
Discography
In chronological order of first issue.- 1968. WDR Symphony Orchestra, Cologne, conducted by Karlheinz Stockhausen, Bruno MadernaBruno MadernaBruno Maderna was an Italian conductor and composer. For the last ten years of his life he lived in Germany and eventually became a citizen of that country.-Biography:...
, and Michael GielenMichael Gielen-Professional career:Gielen was born in Dresden, Germany, to opera director Josef Gielen. Through his mother, Rose, he is the nephew of Eduard Steuermann and Salka Steuermann Viertel. He began his career as a pianist in Buenos Aires, where he studied with Erwin Leuchter and gave an early...
. Recorded May 1965; released with Stockhausen’s CarréCarré (Stockhausen)Carré for four orchestras and four choirs is a composition by the German composer Karlheinz Stockhausen, and is Work Number 10 in the composer's catalog of works.-History:...
on Deutsche Grammophon DG 137 002 (LP), DG921022 (Cassette). [N.p.]: Polydor International GmbH.- reissued under the same LP disc number, in the first set of Deutsche Grammophon’s Avant Garde series. [Hamburg]: Deutsche Grammophon Gesellschaft, ca. 1972.
- reissued on reel-to-reel 7-½ ips tape, as DGC 7002. Elk Grove Village, Illinois: Ampex/Deutsche Grammophon, ca. 1974.
- reissued on Stockhausen Complete Edition CD 5. Kürten: Stockhausen-Verlag, 1992.
- reissued (without Carré) on Die Neue Musik und ihre neuesten Entwicklungen, Opus Musicum OM 116 – OM 118 [6833 174-76] (3-LP set), (with works by Berio, Boulez, Earle Brown, Cage, Luc Ferrari, Henze, Kagel, Ligeti, Messiaen, Jens-Peter Ostendorf, Penderecki, Schnebel, Xenakis, Zimmermann). Cologne: Arno Volk Verlag; Hans Gerig KG, 1975.
- 1982. Deutscher Musikrat: Zeitgenössische Musik in der Bundesrepublik Deutschland 4: 1950–1960. WDR Symphony Orchestra, Cologne, cond. Karlheinz Stockhausen (orchestra 1), Bruno Maderna (orchestra 2), Pierre BoulezPierre BoulezPierre Boulez is a French composer of contemporary classical music, a pianist, and a conductor.-Early years:Boulez was born in Montbrison, Loire, France. As a child he began piano lessons and demonstrated aptitude in both music and mathematics...
(orchestra 3). Recorded 24 March 1958 in four channels; stereo mix 1982. Deutsche Harmonia Mundi DMR 1010-12 (3LP boxed set). Cologne: EMI Electrola GmbH. - 1996. Berliner Philharmoniker, cond. Friedrich GoldmannFriedrich GoldmannFriedrich Goldmann was a German composer and conductor.-Life:Born on 27 April 1941, in Siegmar-Schönau, Chemnitz, Goldmann’s music education began in 1951 when he joined the Dresdner Kreuzchor...
(orchestra 1), Claudio AbbadoClaudio AbbadoClaudio Abbado, Cavaliere di Gran Croce OMRI , is an Italian conductor. He has served as music director of the La Scala opera house in Milan, principal conductor of the London Symphony Orchestra, principal guest conductor of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, music director of the Vienna State Opera,...
(orchestra 2), Marcus Creed (orchestra 3). Recorded Berlin, Philharmonie, Grosser Saal, December 1994. (with Kurtág, Grabstein für Stephan, op. 15c, and Stele, op. 33). DG 447 761-2; also issued on DG 940 462-2. - 2005. Leaving Home: Orchestral Music in the 20th Century. A Conducted Tour by Sir Simon Rattle. Volume 6: "After the Wake". City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Simon RattleSimon RattleSir Simon Denis Rattle, CBE is an English conductor. He rose to international prominence as conductor of the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra and since 2002 has been principal conductor of the Berlin Philharmonic ....
, John Carewe, and Daniel Harding. Recorded Birmingham, International Convention Centre, 2 March 1996. Complete performance of Gruppen as a DVD extra. (Programme includes excerpts from: Boulez, Le Marteau sans maître; Britten, Serenade for Tenor, Horn & Strings, op. 31; Schoenberg, A Survivor from Warsaw, op. 46; Stockhausen, Gruppen; Richard Strauss, Four Last Songs; Stravinsky, Agon). Arthaus Musik, DVD 102 043. Also available as part of a 7-DVD set, Arthaus Musik 102 073. Leipzig: Arthaus Musik GmbH. - 2006a. Schönberg Ensemble Edition: A Century of Music in Perspective. Schönberg Ensemble, Asko Ensemble, Amsterdam Sinfonietta, Nederlands Blazers Ensemble, Nieuw Ensemble, Slagwerkgroep Den Haag, cond. Reinbert de Leeuw, Oliver KnussenOliver KnussenOliver Knussen CBE is a British composer and conductor.-Biography:Oliver Knussen was born in Glasgow, Scotland. His father, Stuart Knussen, was principal double bass of the London Symphony Orchestra. Oliver Knussen studied composition with John Lambert, between 1963 and 1969 and also received...
, Robert Spano. Recorded 3 September 1995. Released on SACD as disc 9 in the 27-disc CD/DVD set, Etcetera KTC9000 (22 CDs 1 SACD 4 DVDs). Also issued separately, as Schönberg Ensemble Edition nr. 9. - 2006b. Eötvös Conducts Stockhausen: Gruppen, Punkte. WDR Symphony Orchestra, Cologne, conducted by Arturo Tamayo (orchestra 1), Péter EötvösPeter EötvösPéter Eötvös is a Hungarian composer and conductor.Eötvös was born in Odorheiu Secuiesc/Székelyudvarhely, Szeklerland, Transylvania . He studied composition in Budapest and Cologne. From 1962, he composed for film in Hungary. Eötvös played regularly with the Stockhausen Ensemble between 1968 and...
(orchestra 2), Jacques Mercier (orchestra 3). Recorded by WDR at Messe Rheinlandsaal, Cologne 28 May/02 June 1997. (with Stockhausen: Punkte). BMC CD 117. [Budapest]: Budapest Music Center Records.
Further reading
- Abendroth, WalterWalter AbendrothWalter Abendroth was a German composer, editor, and writer on music.- Selected compositions :Orchestral*Sinfonietta in drei Sätzen for large orchestra...
. 1958. "Musikalische Atomzertrümmerung". Die Zeit no. 43 (24 October):8. - Beyer, Peter. 2000. "Regelwerk und Theorie serieller Musik in Karlheinz Stockhausens Gruppen für drei Orchester." In Musiktheorie: Festschrift für Heinrich Deppert zum 65. Geburtstag, edited by Wolfgang Budday, Heinrich Deppert, and Erhard Karkoschka, 209–60. Tutzing: Hans Schneider. ISBN 3-7952-1005-4.
- Decroupet, Pascal. 1997. "Gravitationsfeld Gruppen: Zur Verschränkung der Werke Gesang der Jünglinge, Gruppen und Zeitmaße und deren Auswirkung auf Stockhausens Musikdenken in der zweiten Hälfte der fünfziger Jahre". Musiktheorie 12, no. 1:37–51.
- Del Mar, NormanNorman Del MarNorman Del Mar CBE was a British conductor, horn player, and biographer. As a conductor, he specialized in the music of late romantic composers; including Edward Elgar, Gustav Mahler, and Richard Strauss. He left a great legacy of recordings of British music, in particular Elgar, Vaughan Williams,...
. 1961. "On Co-Conducting Stockhausen's Gruppen". Tempo, new series, no. 59 (Autumn): 15–23. - Frisius, Rudolf. 2008. Karlheinz Stockhausen II: Die Werke 1950–1977; Gespräch mit Karlheinz Stockhausen, "Es geht aufwärts". Mainz, London, Berlin, Madrid, New York, Paris, Prague, Tokyo, Toronto: Schott Musik International. ISBN 9783795702496.
- Hedges, Anthony. 1961. "Music in the Provinces: Glasgow". Musical Times 102, no. 1421 (July): 431.
- Kohl, Jerome. 2004. “Der Aspekt der Harmonik in Licht.” In Internationales Stockhausen-Symposion 2000: LICHT: Musikwissenschaftliches Institut der Universität zu Köln, 19. bis 22. Oktober 2000. Tagungsbericht. Signale aus Köln: Beiträge zur Musik der Zeit 10, edited by Imke Misch and Christoph von Blumröder, 116–32. Münster, Berlin, London: LIT-Verlag. ISBN 3-8258-7944-5.
- Smaczny, Jan. 1996. "Classical: Towards the Millennium Symphony Hall / ICC Hall 3, Birmingham". The Independent (5 March).
- Stockhausen, Karlheinz. 1964. "Nr. 6: Gruppen für 3 Orchester (1955–57)". In his Texte zur Musik, vol. 2, edited by Dieter Schnebel, 71–72. Cologne: Verlag M. DuMont Schauberg.
- Weber, Mirko. 2007. "Ins Schwarze". Die Zeit no. 25 (14 June): 52.
External links
- Andrew Clements, "Stockhausen: Gruppen". The Guardian 1 June 2001
- Introduction to Gruppen by Albrecht Moritz
- Gruppen essay by Ingvar Norden
- Video excerpt
- Another video excerpt
- Audio excerpts on the composer's website: