Répons - Change of perspective
It's in Baden-Baden that Pierre Boulez had taken up residence in the 60s. It is also where he died, on January 5th, 2016, at the age of 90. Naturally, it was an unavoidable stop on Boulez' 100th anniversay tour. And what better piece to celebrate this event, than Boulez's masterpiece Répons, performed by the Ensemble intercontemporain? This unique work, which constitutes one of the best pieces of electroacoustic music ever written – alongside Gabrieli's and Monteverdi's responsorial pieces – creates a dialogue between the instrumental space, at the center of the stage, the soloists scattered across the room, and the electronics. Boulez, who had mastered the use of electroacoustic instruments, creates in this piece a sense of unity between the different players, from the soloists to the electronics, in a perfect symbiosis that produces a choreography of sounds within the space.
Dimitri Vassilakis, Sébastien Vichard pianos
Gilles Durot, Samuel Favre percussions
Valeria Kafelnikov harp
Aurélien Gignoux cymbalum
Ensemble intercontemporain
Pierre Bleuse director
Augustin Muller IRCAM electonics
Jérémie Henrot IRCAM sound diffusion
Pierre Boulez Répons, for six soloists, ensemble and real-time electronics