Luciano Berio
Orchestral Works

Convinced that for a composer the best commentary on a piece of music was other music, Luciano Berio puts this principle into practice with the cycle of Chemins: if in the Sequenze he had tackled meticulous and virtuosic writing entrusted each time to a solo instrument, in the Chemins he resumes and expands those pieces by accompanying the solo instruments with a small orchestra or ensemble.

This beautiful CD, published by the German label col legno and recorded live at the Wien Modern festival in 2007, presents two pieces from this cycle: "Chemins I" for harp and orchestra (1965), based on "Sequenza II" for harp, and "Chemins IIb" for orchestra (1969), in turn a rewriting of the second piece of the cycle.

Berio said: “The Chemins are the best analyses of my Sequenze. In them, I cite, translate, expand, and transcribe the Sequenze”; hence the title of the cycle, which refers to new paths, to new roads that proliferate from the starting pieces. But the same principle is also the basis of the third piece present on this CD, the "Concerto for Two Pianos and Orchestra" (1973) where, once again, "the two solo instruments coexist with their reflected and transcribed image in the orchestra".

I like these pieces by Berio for their full, rich sound. Berio does not favor pauses for reflection, his orchestral pieces are exemplary for their rich color, sonic density, and the ability to create moments of progressive tension answered by sudden and serene relaxations. Observations that hold true to the nth degree for the last piece of the CD: "Formazioni" from 1987.

Are you familiar with the traditional arrangement of an orchestra? Violins on the left, violas in the center, cellos and double basses on the right, wind and brass behind, and percussion on the sides? Well, in this case, Berio changes the rules: the foreground features brass, divided into two groups and seated at the sides on raised platforms; the winds are also divided into three groups, and one of these is to the left of the conductor, in the place of the violins! The poor harps, always sacrificed at the back, this time find themselves in pole position, showing off in front of everyone. And so on.

In short: a strategic arrangement of the orchestra, and Berio himself emphasized the military allusion of the title. I've loved this piece ever since I heard it by chance on the radio (Radio3 Rai) without yet knowing whose it was. An explosion of colors, fantasy, and instrumental exuberance.

But there’s no point in going on. I'm rushing to put these "Orchestral Works" by Luciano Berio back in the player: a celebration.