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Was born in Venice, where he also died. He is ranked
among the most distinguished founders of the post-war avantgarde,
alongside K. Stockhausen, P. Boulez and I. Xenakis. He studied composition
with G. F. Malipiero, B. Maderna and H. Scherchen. He also graduated in
law from Padua University. At first recognized mainly in Germany with
works presented at the Darmstadt summer courses, he came to international
attention in 1956 with the premiere of Il canto sospeso for solo voices,
chorus and orchestra in Cologne. Five years later the work was performed
at the Warsaw Autumn Festival.
His political views, reflected in membership of the Italian Communist
Party (which he joined in 1953), had a deep impact on many of his pieces.
He was a member of the Akademie der Künste of Berlin. From 1960 he
focused mainly on electroacoustic music (initially labelled Oelectronic1)
in the Studio di Fonologia Musicale della rai in Milan (founded by Berio
and Maderna). In 198085 he served as artistic director of the
Experimental Studio of the Heinrich Strobel Foundation in Freiburg im
Breisgau.
Luigi Nono made several visits to Poland. Two of his pieces have
a Polish context: Diario polacco 158 and Quando stanno morendo (Diario
polacco II). The latter, commissioned by the Warsaw Autumn in 1981, was
composed under the impression of martial law imposed in Poland in December
1981. It was dedicated to Nono1s OPolish friends and comrades, who in
exile, the underground, in prisons and places of work persevere in
resistance; who still hope against hope and who believe even if they are
non-believers1.
Principal works: Variazioni canoniche sulla serie dell1
op. 41 di Arnold Schoenberg for orchestra (1950), Polifonica Monodia
Ritmica for chamber orchestra (1951), Composizione per orchestra (1951),
Epitaffio per Federico Garcia Lorca three studies: EspaYa en el corazón
for soprano and baritone solo, mixed choir and instruments, Y su sangre ya
viene cantando for flute and orchestra, Memento. Romance de la guardia
civil espagnola for reciter, choir of reciters, mixed choir and orchestra
(195253), Due espressioni per orchestra for orchestra (1953), Il
mantello rosso, ballet music (1953), La victoire de Guernica for mixed
choir and orchestra (1954), Liebeslied for mixed choir, harp and
instrumental ensemble (1954), Canti per 13 for chamber orchestra (1955),
Incontri for 24 instruments (1955), Il canto sospeso for solo voices,
choir and orchestra (1955/56), Varianti for solo violin, arche e legni
italiano (1957), La terra e la compagna for soprano and tenor, mixed choir
and orchestra (1975), Cori di Didone for mixed choir and percussion
(1958), Composizione per orchestra n. 2: Diario polacco 158 (195859),
Sará dolce tacere for eight solo voices
(1960), Ha venido, Canciones para Silvia for solo soprano and choir
(1960), Omaggio a Emilio Vedova for tape (1960), Intolleranza 1960
stage action for solo voices, choir and orchestra (1960/61), Suite da
camera da Intoleranza 1960 for solo soprano, choir and orchestra (1969),
Canti di vita e d1amore: Sul Ponte di Hiroshima for soprano, tenor and
orchestra (1962), Canciones a Guiomar for solo soprano, female choir and
instruments (1962/63), La fabbrica illuminata for mezzo-soprano and tape
(1964), Musik zu ODie Ermittlung1 von Peter Weiss for tape (1965), Ricorda
cosi ti hanno fatto in Auschwitz for tape (1966), A floresta é jovem e
cheja di vida for three voices, soprano, clarinet, copper plates and tape
(1966), Per Bastiana Tai-Yang-Cheng for orchestra and tape (1967),
Contrappunto dialettico alla mente for tape (1968), Musica-Manifesto n.1:
Un volto del mare Non consumiamo Marx for voices and tape (1968/69),
Musica per Manzú, sound track to the film Pace e guerra for tape (1969),
Yentonces comprendió for six female voices, mixed choir, tape and live
electronics (1969/70), Voci destroying muros for solo soprano, female
choir and orchestra (1970), Ein Gespenst geht um die Welt for soprano,
mixed choir and orchestra (1971), Como una ola de fuerza y luz for
orchestra and tape (1971/72), Siamo la gioventú del Vietnam for one-voice
choir (1973), Al gran sole carico d1amore opera (1972/74), Für Paul
Dessau for tape (1974), ...sofferte onde serene ... for piano and tape
(1976), Con Luigi Dallapiccola for six percussionists and live electronics
(1979), Fragmente Stille, An Diotima for string quartet (1979/80), Io,
frammento dal Prometeo for two sopranos, chamber choir, bass flute,
double-bass clarinet and live electronics (1980/81), Dónde estás,
hermano? for two sopranos, mezzo-soprano and alto (1982), Quando stanno
morendo. Diario polacco n. 2 for two sopranos, mezzo-soprano, flute and
live electronics (1982), Guai ai gelidi mostri for two voices, flute,
clarinet, tube, viola, cello, double bass and live electronics (1983),
Omaggio a György
Kurtág for wind instruments and live electronics (1983), A Carlo Scarpa
architetto, al suolo infiniti possibili for orchestra (1984), Prometeo,
tragedia dell1ascolto for four instrumental groups, two sopranos, two
contraltos, tenor, mixed choir, two actors and live electronics (1984), A
Pierre, dell1infinito azzurro silenzio, inquietum for double-bass flute,
double-bass clarinet and live electronics (1985), Risonanze erranti for
mezzo-soprano, flute, tuba, percussion and live electronics (1986),
Caminantes ...Ayacucho for solo alto, flute, organ and orchestra
(1986/87), No hay Post-Prae-Ludium baab-arr for ottavino and live
electronics (1988), La lontananza nostalgica-futura Madrigale á piu
Caminantes con Gidon Kremer for solo violin, live electronics and tape
(1988), OHay que caminar1 sognando for two violins (1989).
Omaggio a Emilio Vedova is Luigi Nono1s first
electronic work which was realised just as many others at Milan1s
Studio di Fonologia. The Venetian painter Emilio Vedova (b. 1919) was a
friend of Nono. The composer considered him a very close friend not only
because of his political views (he was a member of the anti-fascist
movement) but also due to his artistic temperament which was manifested in
the ecstatic wealth of colours in Vedova1s abstract paintings.
(Note from the programme book of the 1991 OWarsaw Autumn1)
In La fabbrica illuminata there are three types of
sounds:
1) concrete sounds registered and transformed industrial noises that
were originally recorded in the Italsider plant in Genova, as well as
texts of Giuliano Scabia recited and chanted by the rai Choir of Milan and
by workers of the Italsider;
2) electronic sounds produced by using the equipment of the Centro di
Folonogia della rai in Milan;
3) live sounds female voice singing poems of Cesare Pavese.
Like Nono1s many other pieces, La fabbrica illuminata manifests his
Marxist convictions. The political message of the piece is quite
conspicuous: to present the hard work of metallurgists operating a
blast-furnance, the contrast of Opure1 sounds (Obourgeois1 by their nature,
since produced at a studio founded and financed by a Obourgeois1 society)
and sounds of a factory that is animated by the presence and the labour of
its workers.
1
fabbrica dei morti la chiamavano
esposizione operaia
a ustioni
a esalazioni nocive
a gran masse di acciaio fuso
esposizione operaia
a elevatissime temperature
su otto ore solo due na intasca l1operaio
esposizione operaia
a materiali proiettati
relazioni umane per accelerare i tempi
esposizione operaia
a cadute
a luci abbaglianti
a corrente ad alta tensione
quanti minuti-uomo per morire?
2
e non si fermano mani di aggredire
ininterrotti che vuota le ore
al corpo nudo afferrano
quadranti, visi; e non si fermano
guardano guardano occhi fissi: occhi mani
sera giro del letto
tutte le mie notti ma aridi orgasmi
tutta la citta dai morti vivi
noi continuamente proteste
la folla cresce parla del morto
la cabina detta tomba
tagliano i tempi
fabbrica come lager
uccisi
Guliano Scabia
3
passeranno i mattini
passeranno le angosce
non sara cosi sempre
ritroverai qualcosa
(excerpts from Due poesie by T. di Cesare Pavese )
(Note from the programme book of the 1991 OWarsaw Autumn1)
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