Inner Time II

Inner Time II, op. 42 (1993), by Horaţiu Rădulescu, is for seven B-flat clarinets.

The pitch structure is based on an untempered scale of 42 notes derived from partials 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, and all the odd partials up to 83 of a low A (emphasizing the odd partials, in fact, is consistent with the timbre of the clarinet).
The note derived from the 6th partial is the lowest and corresponds to the low E of the B-flat clarinet; The highest, that of the 83rd partial, is just below the highest D in the range of an Eb clarinet.
In this piece, however, all the sounds are produced by Bb clarinets.
The 42 notes of the scale are divided among the seven clarinetists: each of them must learn to play six notes. I say learn because, deriving directly from the harmonics, the scale is not tempered, but natural, and requires considerable precision of intonation, as the pitches are defined at the level of the 64th of a tone. During rehearsals, electronic tuners are used to help the performers find the correct intonation.

Inner Time II is a tribute to Alexander Calder (the one of the mobiles). Here Radulescu applies the register filter technique, which means that he selects only certain parts of the scale just as if he were applying a bandpass filter. Indeed, the entire piece is a gradual shift from high to low frequencies at different tempos, like the various elements of a piece of furniture rotating around each other.
The temporal structure, however, is very complex and also draws on the golden ratio and its counterpart, the Fibonacci series.
If you want more details, you can read the program notes (pdf in 3 languages).

A truly beautiful piece, fascinating even if not easy because Radulescu knows no compromises; just consider that the whole thing lasts almost an hour and is very slow.

The work of the performers, then, is superb, even if, when I hear pieces of this type that are all about precision Given the intonation that goes beyond the equal-tempered system, I wonder if it wouldn't be appropriate to use electronics, without subjecting the performers to unnecessary cruelty.

You can download Inner Time II in FLAC from the Internet Archive

Horaţiu Rădulescu – Inner Time II, op. 42 – flac format
Armand Angster clarinet system

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