Pierre Boulez (1925–2016)

As a child, Pierre Boulez sang in his church choir. His sister taught him to play the piano at an early age. He received additional training in music from private teachers. Despite his musical aptitude, his parents directed him toward a career in engineering; however, his interest and talent in afficher plus music eventually won out. After he graduated from the Paris Conservatory in 1945, Boulez continued to study with Olivier Messiaen, one of his teachers at the conservatory. That same year, Boulez completed his first composition, Three Psalmodies, for piano, which exhibits an influence of Messiaen's intricate rhythms. Boulez believed that twentieth-century composers were meant to create a new musical language free from romantic associations. The 12-tone system of Arnold Schoenberg dominated his writing and thinking. In 1946 he wrote a sonata for piano and a sonata for two pianos that used a strict 12-tone row. Although the 12-tone system greatly influenced Boulez's compositions, he took his music one step further. In 1948 Boulez wrote a second piano sonata that broke the bounds of the 12-tone system. Boulez aimed for the application of the 12-tone technique not only to pitch, as had been previously done, but also to durations, dynamics, and articulation. During the 1950s Boulez continued to experiment with music and sounds, incorporating concrete music. Polyphonie x Polyphonie x, for 18 instruments (1951), exemplifies this technique. In later years, Boulez also experimented with rearranging the stage of the traditional symphony orchestra. In 1966 Boulez again became the center of controversy when he announced he was severing all connections with the French government and disassociating himself from all its music organizations. (Bowker Author Biography) afficher moins