24 mars 1958 - Stockhausen - Gruppen für drei Orchester

Description:

Written between 1955 and 57.

The premiere of the work took place in the Rheinsaal of the Kölner Messe in Cologne-Deutz, as part of the WDR's concert series Musik der Zeit, on 24 March 1958 with the Cologne Radio Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Stockhausen (orchestra I), Bruno Maderna (orchestra II), and Pierre Boulez (orchestra III). The score is dedicated to Herbert Eimert, director at that time of the WDR electronic music studio (Stockhausen 1971, 22). Gruppen was performed twice on the programme, with the world premiere of Pierre Boulez's Third Piano Sonata, performed by the composer, in between (Misch 1998, 176n13).

He had planned for it to be a composition for orchestra and electronics, and to serially determine instrumental combinations.