zeroPoints

for orchestra

Commissioned by London Symphony Orchestra, Kölner Philharmonie, Théâtre des Champs Elysées,
Carnegie Hall, Societé Philharmonique de Bruxelles,
Musikfestwochen Luzern, Edinburgh International Festival for Boulez 2000

Description

First performance: 27 February 2000, London
London Symphony Orchestra
Conductor: Pierre Boulez

 

Towards the zeroPoints

I wrote this orchestral piece on commission for the London Symphony Orchestra and Pierre Boulez in 2000. It is an unusual task, a special honour for a composer-conductor to write music for another composer-conductor.
Since the eighties I have often conducted Boulez´Domaines, and I still wonder why he begins bar-numbering with O instead of the accustomed 1. Out of respect for the master I dared only aim at the interspace between 0 and 1, thus the titles of the movements run from 0.1, 0.2, … to 0.9, without ever reaching the number 1.

zeroPoints has other personal associations as well. Nostalgic memories bind me to the audio recordings of the fifties and sixties – the years of my childhood – which formed and determined my musical thinking in a fundamental way. Technical noise was a natural by-product of recording, of the audio technology of that time. These sound-memories appear in several of my works – for example, the hissing and crackling of old LPs at the end of the movements of Atlantis. The “LP-noise” imitation at the beginning of zeroPoints derives from the same source – but today, in the age of faultless technology, it had to be produced artificially, using double-bass tremolos. The clarinet signals that start the piece correspond to the 1kHz countdown sinus signals used in film music recordings.
This, too, leads to the zero point: 3-2-1-0, and thus music starts from zero…

/Peter Eötvös/

Read further

 

Programme note by Paul Griffiths

This is music for a new age (if not New Age music), music of initiations. Since the 1980’s, the composer has said, I have conducted Domaines by Pierre Boulez and have always been deeply impressed by his “figure zero” in the score. In zeroPoints I composed several “zero figures” and stopped before reaching the “figure I”. The topical importance of this piece is quite obvious: a chain of beginnings, of successive starting moments, of overtures – in order to leave the zero point of the new millennium in a rather different way, suggesting only which direction it might take. There are eight zero points, of which the first begins as a 1kHz beep on E flat clarinet and rapidly develops through loud, vivid gestures into a dance. This freezes to leave a chorale in low and very low wind instruments (not counted as a start: perhaps a premature ending), after which comes a bubbling up to a fast, loud, angular inception from strings and percussion, with occasional staccato chords from the wind. When this is over, it recommences as it had before, except that this time what develops is a moto perpetuo for wind and percussion with string interruptions. Suddenly brass and tam-tams, fortissimo, start the fourth inauguration, which is taken over by breezy music, quieter and quieter. The fifth opening – complex-textured, fantastical and short – is in the treble register. The sixth is for chiming percussion over slow-moving low chords. The seventh is kicked off by the beeps again, but faster and leading in another direction, towards music of tremolandos, trills and outbursts. The final outset brings a reinjection of activity from piano, harps and percussion, leading to a race to the finish – a race the composer can be presumed to have won by completing his score just four days before the end of the 1900s.

Performances

31 Oct, 2019
Budapest, Hungary

Eötvös: zeroPoints, Speaking drums, Per Luciano Berio

Martin Grubinger, percussion
Cond: Peter Eötvös
National Philharmonic Orchestra

Müpa
14 Jan, 2019
Dresden, Germany

zeroPoints

Staatskapelle Dresden
Lionel Bringuier, conductor
Venue: Semperoper, Dresden
13 Jan, 2019
Dresden, Germany

zeroPoints

Staatskapelle Dresden
Lionel Bringuier, conductor
Venue: Semperoper, Dresden
12 Jan, 2019
Dresden, Germany

zeroPoints

Staatskapelle Dresden
Lionel Bringuier, conductor
Venue: Semperoper, Dresden
16 Jun, 2017
Zürich, Switzerland

Eötvös: ZeroPoints

Tonhalle Zürich
cond: Lionel Bringuier
15 Jun, 2017
Zürich, Switzerland

Eötvös: ZeroPoints

Tonhalle Zürich
cond: Lionel Bringuier
6 May, 2016
Prague, Chech Republic

Eötvös: Speaking Drums, zeroPoints

Martin Grubinger, percussion,
Cond: Peter Eötvös
Czech Philharmonic Orchestra
5 May, 2016
Prague, Chech Republic

Eötvös: Speaking Drums, zeroPoints

Martin Grubinger, percussion,
Cond: Peter Eötvös
Czech Philharmonic Orchestra
4 May, 2016
Prague, Chech Republic

Eötvös: Speaking Drums, zeroPoints

Martin Grubinger, percussion,
Cond: Peter Eötvös
Czech Philharmonic Orchestra
4 Jul, 2014
Paris, France

Eötvös: zeroPoints

Philharmonique Orchestra Radio France
Manifeste festival IRCAM
22 May, 2014
Tokyo, Japan

Eötvös: Speaking drums, The gliding of the eagle in the skies, zeroPoints

Martin Grubinger, percussion
Cond.: Peter Eötvös
NHK Orchestra
15 Mar, 2014
Monte Carlo, Monaco

Eötvös: zeroPoints, Cello Concerto Grosso

Eötvös: zeroPoints
Eötvös: Cello Concerto Grosso (vcl. Eric-Maria Couturier)
Kurtág: Messages
Kodály: Háry suite

Conductor: Peter Eötvös
Orchestre Philharmonique de Monte Carlo
4 Nov, 2013
Vienna, Austria

Eötvös: zeroPoints

SWR Sinfonieorchester
conductor: François-Xavier Roth
Wiener Konzerthaus
30 Sep, 2012
Milano, Italy

Eötvös: zeroPoints

Eötvös: zeroPoints
Bartók: Piano concerto no.2. (Pierre Laurent Aimard, piano)
Varese: Amérique 1922

Cond: Peter Eötvös
Orchestra Filarmonica della Scala

 

 

 

 
7 Mar, 2012
Toronto, Canada

Eötvös: zeroPoints, Cello Concerto Grosso

New Creations Festival

Joseph Johnson, violoncello
Cond: Peter Eötvös

Toronto Symphony Orchestra
14 May, 2011
London, UK

Eötvös portrait concert

BBC London

Paris-Dakar
Octet Plus
Derwischtanz
Sonata per sei
Psalm 151
Guildhall Ensemble, cond. Richard Baker

zeroPoints
Psychokosmos (Miklos Lukács, cimbalom)
Levitation (Richard Hosford, John Bradbury clarinets)
IMA (BBCSC + BBC Singers)
BBC Symphony Orchestra, cond. Peter Eötvös

Films:
"The Seventh Door" - portrait film
"Three sisters" - opera film

Barbican Center
23 Jan, 2011
Berlin, Germany

Eötvös: zeroPoints

DSO Berlin
Cond: Wolfgang Lischke
Ultraschallfestival
23 Mar, 2009
Hannover, Germany

Eötvös: zeroPoints

Staatstheater Hannover
Conductor: André de Ridder
22 Mar, 2009
Hannover, Germany

Eötvös: zeroPoints

Staatstheater Hannover
Conductor: André de Ridder
16 Nov, 2007
Bratislava, Slovakia

Eötvös: zeroPoints

Slovak Philharmonic Orchestra
Conductor: Zsolt Nagy
12 Oct, 2007
Amsterdam, The Netherlands

Eötvös: zeroPoints

Concertgebouw Orchestra

Conductor: Vladimir Jurowski
15 Jul, 2007
Luxembourg, Luxembourg

Eötvös: zeroPoints

Luxemburg Philh. Orch.
conductor: Peter Eötvös
28 Sep, 2006
Montreal, Canada

Eötvös: zeroPoints

Debussy: Iberia
Bruch: Violin concerto
Lutoslawsky: 4th Symphony
Eötvös: zeroPoints

Cond: Peter Eötvös
Montreal Symph. Orch.
26 Sep, 2006
Montreal, Canada

Eötvös: zeroPoints

Debussy: Iberia
Bruch: Violin concerto
Lutoslawsky: 4th Symphony
Eötvös: zeroPoints

Cond: Peter Eötvös
Montreal Symph. Orch.
4 Jun, 2006
Sao Paolo, Brazil

Eötvös: zeroPoints

Sao Paulo City Symphony Orch.
Cond: Pedro Amaral
10 Mar, 2006
Lisbon, Portugal

Eötvös: zeroPoints, Jet Stream

Eötvös: zeroPoints
Eötvös: Jet Stream
Zemlinsky: Seejungfau

Hakan Hardenberger, trumpet

Cond: Peter Eötvös
Gulbenkian Orchestra
9 Mar, 2006
Lisbon, Portugal

Eötvös: zeroPoints, Jet Stream

Eötvös: zeroPoints
Eötvös: Jet Stream
Zemlinsky: Seejungfau

Hakan Hardenberger, trumpet

Cond: Peter Eötvös
Gulbenkian Orchestra
8 Oct, 2005
Strasbourg, France

Eötvös: zeroPoints

Jarrell: Abschied
Boulez: Figures, doubles, prismes
Eötvös: zeroPoints
Debussy: Jeux

Cond: Peter Eötvös

Orchestre Philharmonique de Strasbourg

 
3 Sep, 2004
Frankfurt, Germany

Eötvös: zeroPoints, Jet Stream

Auftakt Festival, Frankfurt, Germany

Eötvös: zeroPoints, Jet Stream
Stravinsky: Sacre du Printemps/
Bartók: Concerto for orchestra

Cond: Peter Eötvös
Junge Deutsche Philharmonie

German tour, September 3-12
Berlin, Ulrichhusen, Magdeburg, Berlin, Rotterdam, Frankfurt, Cologne, Dortmund, Leipzig, Dresden
20 May, 2004
Milwaukee, USA

Eötvös: zeroPoints

Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra
Cond: Gergely Vajda
18 May, 2004
Paris, France

Eötvös: zeroPoints, Jet Stream

Orchestre Philharmonique de Radio France

Cond: Peter Eötvös

Cité de la Musique
28 Nov, 2003
Stuttgart, Germany

Eötvös: zeroPoints

Bartók: Four orch. pieces Op. 12
Eötvös: zeroPoints
Zemlinsky: Die Seejungfrau

Cond: Péter Eötvös
Radio Symphony Orchestra Stuttgart
27 Nov, 2003
Stuttgart, Germany

Eötvös: zeroPoints

Bartók: Four orch. pieces Op. 12
Eötvös: zeroPoints
Zemlinsky: Die Seejungfrau

Cond: Péter Eötvös
Radio Symphony Orchestra Stuttgart
26 Nov, 2003
Stuttgart, Germany

Eötvös: zeroPoints

Bartók: Four orch. pieces Op. 12
Eötvös: zeroPoints
Zemlinsky: Die Seejungfrau

Cond: Péter Eötvös
Radio Symphony Orchestra Stuttgart
30 Mar, 2003
Budapest, Hungary

Eötvös: zeroPoints, Jet Stream

Budapest Spring Festival

Eötvös: zeroPoints
Eötvös: Jet Stream (Markus Stockhausen, trumpet)
Debussy: Jeux
Debussy: La mer
BBC Symphony Orchestra

Cond: Péter Eötvös
BBC Symphony Orchestra
28 Mar, 2003
Vienna, Austria

Eötvös: zeroPoints

Eötvös: zeroPoints
Bartók: Violin concerto Nr. 2 (György Pauk)
Stravinsky: Petroushka (1947)

Cond: Péter Eötvös
Wiener Symphoniker
27 Mar, 2003
Vienna, Austria

Eötvös: zeroPoints

Eötvös: zeroPoints
Bartók: Violin concerto Nr. 2 (György Pauk)
Stravinsky: Petroushka (1947)

Cond: Péter Eötvös
Wiener Symphoniker
22 Mar, 2003
Munich, Germany

Eötvös: zeroPoints

Ligeti: Lontano
Eötvös: zeroPoints
Kurtág: Stele
Bartók: The Miraculous Mandarin

Cond: Péter Eötvös
Münich Philharmonic Orchestra
21 Mar, 2003
Munich, Germany

Eötvös: zeroPoints

Ligeti: Lontano
Eötvös: zeroPoints
Kurtág: Stele
Bartók: The Miraculous Mandarin

Cond: Péter Eötvös
Münich Philharmonic Orchestra
20 Mar, 2003
Munich, Germany

Eötvös: zeroPoints

Ligeti: Lontano
Eötvös: zeroPoints
Kurtág: Stele
Bartók: The Miraculous Mandarin

Cond: Péter Eötvös
Münich Philharmonic Orchestra
21 Feb, 2003
Stockholm, Sweden

Eötvös: zeroPoints, Jet Stream, Atlantis

New Music Festival

Márta Fábián, cimbalom
Boy sopran

Cond: Péter Eötvös
Royal Stockholm Philharmonic

 
15 Feb, 2003
London, UK

Eötvös: zeroPoints, Jet Stream

Eötvös: zeroPoints
Eötvös: Jet Stream - new trumpet concerto premiere (Markus Stockhausen, trumpet)
Debussy: Jeux
Debussy: La mer

Cond: Peter Eötvös
BBC Symphony Orchestra

 
24 Mar, 2002
Brugge, Belgium

Eötvös: ZeroPoints

Ars Musica
Royal Flanders Philharmonic Orch.
Cond: Peter Eötvös
13 Nov, 2001
Chicago, USA

Eötvös: zeroPoints

Chicago Symphony Orchestra
Cond: Pierre Boulez
10 Nov, 2001
Chicago, USA

Eötvös: zeroPoints

Chicago Symphony Orchestra
Cond: Pierre Boulez
9 Nov, 2001
Chicago, USA

Eötvös: zeroPoints

Chicago Symphony Orchestra
Cond: Pierre Boulez
8 Nov, 2001
Chicago, USA

Eötvös: zeroPoints

Chicago Symphony Orchestra
Cond: Pierre Boulez
10 Mar, 2001
Göteborg, Sweden

Eötvös: zeroPoints

Göteborg Symphony Orchestra
Cond.: Peter Eötvös

 

 

 

 
9 Mar, 2001
Göteborg, Sweden

Eötvös: zeroPoints

Göteborg Symphony Orchestra
Cond.: Peter Eötvös

 

 

 

 
12 Feb, 2001
Berlin, Germany

Eötvös: zeroPoints

Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia
Cond: Peter Eötvös

 

 

 

 
8 Feb, 2001
L’Aquila, Italy

Eötvös: zeroPoints

Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia
Cond: Peter Eötvös

 

 

 

 

 
4 Feb, 2001
Rome, Italy

Eötvös: zeroPoints

4-6 February

Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia

Cond: Peter Eötvös
27 Aug, 2000
Edinburgh, UK

Eötvös: zeroPoints

London Symphony Orchestra
conducted by Pierre Boulez

 

 

 

 

 
20 Aug, 2000
Luzerne, Switzerland

Eötvös: zeroPoints

London Symphony Orchestra
conducted by Pierre Boulez

 

 

 

 

 

 
15 Apr, 2000
Brussels, Belgium

Eötvös: zeroPoints

London Symphony Orchestra
conducted by Pierre Boulez

 

 

 
10 Mar, 2000
New York ,USA

Eötvös: zeroPoints

London Symphony Orchestra
conducted by Pierre Boulez

 

 
6 Mar, 2000
Paris, France

Eötvös: zeroPoints

London Symphony Orchestra
conducted by Pierre Boulez

 

 
4 Mar, 2000
Cologne, Germany

Eötvös: zeroPoints

London Symphony Orchestra
conducted by Pierre Boulez

 

 
27 Feb, 2000
London, UK

Eötvös: zeroPoints

first performance
London Symphony Orchestra
conducted by Pierre Boulez

Details

Genre:
Duration:
14 minutes
Date:
1999

Publisher information

Schott Music Mainz

https://en.schott-music.com/shop/zeropoints-no166957.html

Orchestration     

TITLE Dur. Soloists & choir fl ob cl bcl bn   hn tpt tbn tba   perc pf hp   vn1 vn2 va vc db Other Tech
zeroPoints
Orchestra - Chamber Orchestra		14'43403 4331 502 1412101082sax,​epf,​cel,​timpamp, cd

 

2 Piccolos
2 Flutes
2 Oboes
Cor anglais
3 Clarinets ( 1st in Bb, 2nd in A, 3 rd in Eb)
Bass clarinet in Bb
2 Bassoons
Contra bassoon
Soprano saxophone
Tenor saxophone
4 Horns in F
2 Trumpets in C
Piccolo trumpet
2 Trombones ( with quarter valve)
Bass trombone
Tuba

Percussion (5 players):

I (left)
Bass drum
Vibraphone
Cymbal (low)
Tamtam (very low)
Metal chimes ( whisper chimes)
Steeldrum (middle “exotic” tuning, 6 different pitches not determinated)
Triangle (very high)

 

II (centre):
1 Timpano
Vibraphone
Xylophone
Tubular bells
Cymbal (middle)
Tamtam (low)
Steeldrum (high “exotic” tuning, 6 different pitches not determinated)
Triangle (very high)

 

III (centre):
3 Timpani
2 Sleigh bells (high, very high)

 

IV (centre):
1 Timpano
Marimba (one instrument for 4th and 5th player)
Glockenspiel
Tubular bells
Cymbal (middle)
Tamtam (low)
Steeldrum (high “exotic” tuning, 6 different pitches not determinated)
Triangle (high)

 

V (right):
Bass drum
Marimba (one instrument for 4th and 5th player)
Glockenspiel
Cymbal (low)
Tamtam (middle)
1 Crotalo
Steeldrum (middle “exotic” tuning, 6 different pitches not determinated)
Triangle (high)

 

2 Harps
1 Celesta, doubling sampler-keyboard

14 Violins I (ossia: 12)
12 Violins II ( ossia: 10)
10 Violas ( ossia: 8)
10 Violoncellos ( ossia: 6)
8 Double basses ( ossia: 4)

 

Note for the steel drums:

Please do not use any low instruments. Since each instrument is built differently, the notation allows you to play the pitches „freely”, but you should keep
the indicated pitch progression (up, down).
,,Exotic tuning” means that one does not choose ,,European” major or minor chords, but a mixture of major seconds, thirds, fourths and tritoni.
The 6 pitches must be determined by each individual player. In order to avoid unisononi, the 4 players should tune the lowest note among themselves,
then the next higher one etc. lt sounds most beautiful when rich, four-tone chords are created.
Please use original steeldrum mallets (small and light), never vibraphone mallets. Never strike too loud.
If possible, the 4 players should be as far away from each other as possible – only the timpani should be positioned in the middle.

Technical information

The pianist plays on Master Keyboard and celesta.
Needed equipment:
Master Keyboard with KONTAKT Computer Program

____________________________________________

The sound material is available for download

                                       here >

____________________________________________

 

 

 

Sound

Recordings

Further information

Peter Eötvös verfolgt in seinem Orchesterstück zeroPoints zwei zentrale Motive, die in persönlichen Erinnerungen wurzeln. Als ein Auftragswerk für das London Symphony Orchestra und Pierre Boulez ist zeroPoints vor allem eine Art Hommage an den großen Komponisten, Dirigenten und Kollegen Boulez:

 

„Es ist eine unübliche Aufgabe, in gewisser Weise eine besondere Ehre für einen Komponisten-Dirigenten, ein Stück für einen anderen Komponisten-Dirigenten zu schreiben. Seit den 1980er Jahren habe ich des öfteren Boulez’ Domaines dirigiert, und immer wieder frage ich mich, warum er hier die Taktzählung mit einer Null anstelle der gewohnten Eins beginnt. Aus Respekt vor dem Meister wagte ich daher nur, den Raum zwischen Null und Eins anzuvisieren, daher führen die Titel der einzelnen Sätze in zeroPoints von 0.1, 0.2 bis 0.9, ohne je die Zahl Eins zu erreichen.“

Ein zweites Motiv, das Peter Eötvös diesem Werk zugrunde legt, ist die Erinnerung an Geräusche und Klänge: „Nostalgie bindet mich an Aufnahmen der 1950er und 1960er Jahre – meine Kindheit –, die mein musikalisches Denken grundlegend formten, festlegten. Technische Geräusche waren ein quasi natürliches Nebenprodukt der Aufnahmen, genauer der Aufnahmetechnik dieser Zeit. Die ‚Plattengeräusch‘- Imitation am Beginn von zeroPoints entstammt derselben Quelle, aber heutzutage, im Zeitalter fehlerloser Technik, muss diese Imitation künstlich – durch Kontrabass-Tremoli – erzeugt werden. Die Klarinetten-Signale, die das Stück eröffnen, korrespondieren mit den 1kHz Countdown-Sinustönen, die in Filmmusik-Aufnahmen Verwendung finden. Auch dies führt zum Nullpunkt: 3-2-1-0, und so beginnt Musik bei Null…“