André Boucourechliev


André Boucourechliev was a French composer of Bulgarian origin.
Born in Sofia, Boucourechliev studied piano at the Conservatory there. Subsequently, he studied in Paris at the École Normale de Musique de Paris, where he later taught piano. His first attempts at composition date from 1954, when he was engaged in the famous contemporary music sessions at Darmstadt. He honed his compositional technique by seeking out Berio and Maderna in Milan. Following the success of his Piano Sonata, which was performed at the Domaine musical, and works involving choice and chance, he spent a period in America, during which he met Cage, Merce Cunningham, and Rauschenberg. The summit of his exploration of choice and freedom on the part of the performer was reached in Archipels. Many of his later works have gone on to refine or extend these principles. Boucourechliev died in Paris in 1997 at the age of 72.

Honours

WorkOpus No.ScoringDateMediumPublisherDuration
Musique à troisOp. 1flute, clarinet and harpsichord1957 rev. 1958Chamber musicUnpublished00:07:00
Texte IOp. 2tape 1958Electroacoustic musicUnpublished00:06:20
SonateOp. 3piano1959Solo instrumentUnpublished00:10:00
Text IIOp. 4two tapes1959Electroacoustic musicUnpublished00:04:30
GrodekOp. 5soprano, flute and three percussions1963Vocal musicUniversal00:12:00
Musiques NocturnesOp. 6clarinet, harp and piano1965Chamber musicUnpublished00:10:00
Archipel 1Op. 7two pianos and two percussions 1967Chamber musicUniversalvariable
Archipel 2Op. 8string quartet1968String quartetUniversalvariable
Archipel 3Op. 9piano and six percussions1969Percussion ensembleAlphonse Leducvariable
Archipel 4Op. 10Piano1970Solo instrumentAlphonse Leducvariable
Anarchipel – Archipel 5EOp. 11one or two percussions1970Solo instrumentAlphonse Leducvariable
Anarchipel – Archipel 5DOp. 11Piano1970Solo instrumentAlphonse Leducvariable
Anarchipel – Archipel 5COp. 11Organ1970Solo instrumentAlphonse Leducvariable
Anarchipel – Archipel 5BOp. 11Harpsichord1970Solo instrumentAlphonse Leducvariable
Anarchipel – Archipel 5AOp. 11one or two amplified harps1970Solo instrumentAlphonse Leducvariable
AnarchipelOp. 11ensemble of six instruments : amplified harp, amplified harpsichord, organ, piano, 2 percussion1970Instrumental ensembleAlphonse Leducvariable
Ombres Op. 12twelve strings1970OrchestraAlphonse Leduc00:19:00
TombeauOp. 13clarinet in A and percussion or piano1971Chamber musicAlphonse Leduc00:04:00
FacesOp. 14two groupes of orchestra 1972OrchestraAlphonse Leducvariable
AmersOp. 15nineteen instruments1973Instrumental ensembleAlphonse Leducvariable
ThrèneOp. 16tape1974Electroacoustic music00:31:00
ConcertoOp. 17piano and orchestra1975OrchestraSalabertvariable
Six Etudes d’après PiranèseOp. 18Piano1975Solo instrumentSalabertvariable
Le nom d’ŒdipeOp. 196 soloists and tape1978Vocal musicUnpublished00:14:00
Orion IOp. 21Organ1979Solo instrumentSalabertvariable
UlysseOp. 22flute and percussion
Orion IIOp. 23five brasses, piano and two percussions1982Chamber musicSalabertvariable
Orion IIIOp. 24Piano1982Solo instrumentSalabert00:10:00
NocturnesOp. 25clarinet and piano1984Chamber musicSalabert00:12:00
Lit de NeigeOp. 26soprano and nineteen instruments1984Vocal musicSalabert00:20:00
Le Miroir, Sept répliques pour un opéra possibleOp. 27mezzo-soprano and orchestra1987Vocal musicSalabert00:20:00
La chevelure de BéréniceOp. 28instrumental ensemble 1987Instrumental ensembleSalabertvariable
Miroir 2 Op. 29string quartet1989String quartetSalabert00:18:00
Quatuor IIIOp. 30string quartet1994String quartetSalabertvariable
Trois fragments de Michel-AngeOp. 31soprano, flute and piano1995Vocal musicSalabert00:07:30
Les Possédés1971Incidental musicUnpublished00:07:00
Akaratape1967Incidental musicUnpublished00:20:00
Le repos du septième jour3 flutes and 2 percussions1965Incidental musicUnpublished00:27:00
Tic TacFor tape 1959Incidental music00:08:40
RicercareOrganEarly worksUnpublished
Etude 1tape 1956Early worksUnpublished00:03:00
Escholier de merencolieFor solo voice1956Early worksUnpublished
Trois piècesPiano1955Early worksUnpublishedapprox. 4 mn 30
SonateViolin1953Early worksUnpublishedapprox. 7 mn
Quatre piècesFor violin and cello1952Early worksUnpublished
PassacagliaPiano1952Early worksUnpublishedapprox. 5 mn
SignesFor flute, piano and two percussions1961Works withdrawn from the catalogueUnpublishedapprox. 11 mn
Les enfants de la nuitFor tape1992Incidental music-

Writings