Artikulation (Ligeti)

Artikulation is an electronic composition by György Ligeti. Composed and notated in January and February 1958, the piece was prepared and recorded on magnetic tape from February to March at the Studio for Electronic Music of the Westdeutscher Rundfunk in Cologne, with the assistance of Gottfried Michael Koenig and Cornelius Cardew. Ligeti explained:

The piece is called 'Artikulation' because in this sense an artificial language is articulated: question and answer, high and low voices, polyglot speaking and interruptions, impulsive outbreaks and humor, charring and whispering.

The three minute and 45 second long piece, in quadraphonic sound, was premiered March 25, 1958 at WDR Cologne's 'Musik der Zeit' concert series and September 4, 1958 at Darmstadt. It was heard again in its original quadraphonic format in March 1993 at the New England Conservatory of Music, while for recordings it has been mixed down to stereo.