Density 21.5 for solo flute

Edgard Varèse (1883-1965) may not be a household name, but his influence on 20th century music was formidable, particularly with people like Boulez, Messiaen, and even Frank Zappa. From early training in science, Varèse turned toward music in his teenage years. However, he struggled for some time to articulate a nagging feeling that music transcended the aural dimension. It was during a performance of Beethoven’s Symphony No. 7 that Varèse experienced a breakthrough: a sensation that music could be literally spatial, a series of “sound objects, floating in space.” Such philosophical concepts inspired grandiose, often unfinished large-scale projects. He had more success with short works, including the iconic Density 21.5 (1936). Commissioned by French flautist Georges Barrère, the work’s title refers to the material used to make Barrère’s newly acquired platinum flute (the density of platinum being 21.5 g/cc). Density 21.5 holds a revered place in the body of modern works for solo flute. His use of extended techniques forever changed how the flute could be used, influencing both Crumb’s Voice of the Whale and Saariaho’s Noa-Noa. Interestingly, the “shoulders” upon which Varèse seems to have stood were those of Debussy, whose Syrinx offered both direct motivic ideas and general harmonic flavor (tritones, whole tone scales) that helped inspire Varèse’s flights of imagination.

(c) Jason Stell