ALVIN LUCIER (b. 1931)

MUSIC FOR PIANO XL

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NICOLAS HORVATH

‘Little could I have imagined that the passing comment (‘have you ever considered doing a long duration version of your fantastic Music for Piano?’) that I made to Alvin Lucier, America’s legendary experimental composer, resulted in an incredible, new work arriving in my mailbox months later?

Music for Piano with Slow Sweep Pure Wave Oscillators XL is a 64-minute sonic exploration that transports the listener through the timbral possibilities of sonic interference (known by acousticians as 'beating') generated by the interaction between the two pure wave oscillators and the striking of each key on the piano. The beats are neither ornaments nor colours, but the primary material for which the piece was conceptualised.

Like Kubrick's 2001 Black Monolith, Music for Piano with Slow Sweep Pure Wave Oscillators XL is an immersive, intense and enigmatic work.’

– Nicolas Horvath