Niccolò Castiglioni: Quilisma (2006)

Niccolò Castiglioni (1932-1996) was something of an anomaly for a modernist European composer of his generation; he was in no way a traditionalist, but he did not believe that the sun rose and set on the works and theoretical framework of Webern. He was familiar with the newest developments in classical composition, but remained free from allegiance to any particular theoretical school of thought. This puts him somewhat in the same philosophical arena as composers as diverse as Ligeti, Kurtág, and Henze, but Castiglioni's ... Read More

Niccolò Castiglioni (1932-1996) was something of an anomaly for a modernist European composer of his generation; he was in no way a traditionalist, but he did not believe that the sun rose and set on the works and theoretical framework of Webern. He was familiar with the newest developments in classical composition, but remained free from allegiance to any particular theoretical school of thought. This puts him somewhat in the same philosophical arena as composers as diverse as Ligeti, Kurtág, and Henze, but Castiglioni's work is less well known in Europe or the U.S. than theirs He developed an individual aesthetic vision over time, but remained true throughout his life. The most immediately noticeable characteristic of his style is its register -- he almost never wrote in the bass clef, and the majority of his sounds hover far above the staff of the treble clef. "Quilisma" (1977) is such a piece -- tiny sounds made by strings and piano with lots of repeating patterns, limited pitch material for the... Read Less