"Épéï (1976), commissioned by an ensemble in Montreal [Ensemble de la Société de Musique Contemporaine du Québec], explores the colors of a unique instrumentation: English horn, clarinet, trumpet, two trombones, and double bass. Contrary to what one might expect, Xenakis proceeded from the notions of homogeneity and continuity rather than contrast. All six instruments play a substantial role throughout the work, and their distinctive timbres (including the use of mutes in the brass) are revealed only gradually. The sustained character of the music, generally confined within the middle register of the instruments, is disrupted only occasionally during the work's thirteen-minute duration.
A long set of variations on a slow, three-note motive in the muted trumpet and clarinet leads directly into a passage of narrow, undulating glissandi linked by the sustained tones of the supporting instruments. The plaintive character of the English horn is never featured explicitly, but it comes through as an integral part of the ensemble texture, adding to the evocative tone of the whole. Rhythmic passages in which notes or chords are repeated to create pulsations, both synchronized and layered, provide the most notable contrast to the otherwise continuous textures. The flow is also punctuated by sharp dynamic shifts and occasional "flurries" as individual instruments scurry up and down through scale patterns. Épéï bears the palpable influence of Italian composer Giacinto Scelsi (1905 - 88). Scelsi's music, in which narrow bands of sustained sound are gradually varied through microtonal fluctuations of pitch, changes of tone color, and so on, was just becoming known in Paris around the time Xenakis worked on Épéï. In any case, Épéï is dusky, rich, and lyrical in its own distinctive manner." (James Harley)
Performers: Artur Tamayo and the Orchestre Philharmonique du Luxembourg.
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