Boulez - Domaines

Dialectics in sound.

Domaines can now be seen as one of the key works of the 20th century, on the same level as Stravinsky's Rite of Spring or Berg's Wozzeck. This astounding piece was in fact originally intended for solo clarinet when it was premiered in 1968. Two years later, Pierre Boulez adopted a circular arrangemenet made up of six instrumental units, with the clarinet as the sixth of these. The result is a structure in two large sections - original and mirror - directly derived from the dialogue between "the Protagonist" (in this case, Michel Portal) and each of the groups of instruments.