# Luc Ferrari

Luc Ferrari (5 February 1929 – 22 August 2005) was a French composer of Italian heritage and a pioneer in musique concrète and electroacoustic music. He was a founding member of RTF's Groupe de Recherches Musicales (GRMC), working alongside composers such as Pierre Schaeffer and Pierre Henry.

## Biography

Ferrari was born in Paris, and was trained in music at a very young age. He studied the piano under Alfred Cortot, musical analysis under Olivier Messiaen, and composition under Arthur Honegger. His first works were freely atonal. A case of tuberculosis in his youth interrupted his career as a pianist. From then on he mostly concentrated on musical composition. During this illness he had the opportunity to become acquainted with the radio receiver, and with pioneers such as Schönberg, Berg, and Webern.
In 1954, Ferrari went to the United States to meet Edgard Varèse, whose Déserts he had heard on the radio, and had impressed him. This seems to have had a great effect on him, with the tape part in Déserts serving as inspiration for Ferrari to use magnetic tape in his own music. In 1958 he co-founded the Groupe de Recherches Musicales with Pierre Schaeffer and François-Bernard Mâche. He taught in institutions around the world, and worked for film, theatre and radio. By the early 1960, Ferrari had begun work on his Hétérozygote, a piece for magnetic tape which uses ambient environmental sounds to suggest a dramatic narrative. The use of ambient recordings was to become a distinctive part of Ferrari's musical language.
Ferrari's Presque rien No. 1 'Le Lever du jour au bord de la mer (1970) is regarded as a classic of its kind. In it, Ferrari takes a day-long recording of environmental sounds at a Yugoslavian beach and, through editing, makes a piece that lasts just twenty-one minutes. It has been seen as an affirmation of John Cage's idea that music is always going on all around us, and if only we were to stop to listen to it, we would realise this. Ferrari continued to write purely instrumental music as well as his tape pieces. He also made a number of documentary films on contemporary composers in rehearsal, including Olivier Messiaen and Karlheinz Stockhausen.
Ferrari died in Arezzo, Italy on 22 August 2005, at age 76.

## Discography

* Acousmatrix
    Petite symphonie intuitive pour un paysage de printemps (1973–74)
    Strathoven (1985)
    Presque rien avec filles (1989)
    Hétérozygote (1963–64)
    BVHAAST 9009 Acousmatrix 3 – 1990
* Unheimlich schön
    Unheimlich schön (1971)
    Coll. Cinéma pour l'oreille
    Metamkine MKCD008 1993
* L'Escalier des aveugles
    Patajaslotcha (1984)
    L'Escalier des aveugles (1991)
    Xavier Legasa / Donatienne Michel-Dansac / Michel Musseau (song)
    Ensemble Le Banquet, Dir. Olivier Dejours
    Ina-grm ina c 2008/Musidisc 201302 – 1993
* Presque rien
    Music promenade (1964–69)
    Presque rien No.1 – le lever du jour au bord de la mer (1967–70)
    Presque rien No.2 – ainsi continue la nuit dans ma tête multiple (1977)
    Presque rien avec filles (1989)
    Ina-grm 245172 – 1995
* Piano-piano
    Suite pour piano (1952)
    Antisonate (1953)
    Suite hétéroclite (1955)
    Visage I (1956)
    Fragments du journal intime (1980–82)
    Comme une fantaisie dite des réminiscences (1989–91)
    Christine Lagniel / Michel Maurer (Piano)
    Auvidis Montaigne MO 782110 – 1997
* Cellule 75
    Cellule 75 (1975)
    Place des Abbesses (1977)
    Chris Brown (Piano), William Winant (Perc.)
    Tzadik USA – TZ 7033 – 1997
* Interrupteur / Tautologos III
    Interrupteur (1967)
    Tautologos III (1970)
    Ensemble de musique vontemporaine de Paris, Dir. Konstantin Simonovitch
    Blue Chopsticks USA BC1, distrib. France : Chronowax – 1999
* Chansons pour le corps – Et si tout entière maintenant
    Chansons pour le corps
    Elise Caron (Song), Carol Mundinger / Sylvain Frydman (Clar.), Christine Lagniel (Perc.), Michel Maurer (Piano.), Michel Musseau (Synthesizer)
    Et si tout entière maintenant (1986–87)
    Symphonic story. (Prix Italia 1987) – Text by Colette Fellous
    Anne Sée (Voice), Nouvel Orchestre Philharmonique, Dir. Yves Prin.
    Mode Records USA MODE 81 – 1999
* Danses Organiques cinéma pour l'oreille
    Danses organiques (1971–73)
    Elica mpo-3340 – 1999
    vinyle LP Elica 4VL 3704 – 2003
* Far-West news
    Far-West news episode No.1 (1998–99)
    Histoire du plaisir et de la désolation (1979–81)
    Nouvel orchestre de France, Dir. Michael Luig.
    Signature, France ASIN : B00005Q4KU – distribution Harmonia Mundi – 1999
* Cycle des souvenirs – Exploitation des concepts No.2
    Cycle des souvenirs – Exploitation des concepts No.2 (1995–2000)
    Blue Chopsticks USA BC8, distrib. France : Chronowax – 2002
* Tautologos and other early electronic works
    Étude aux accidents (1958)
    Étude aux sons tendus (1958)
    Visage V (1958/59)
    Tête et queue du dragon (1959–60)
    Tautologos I (1961)
    Tautologos II (1961)
    Und so weiter for piano and tape (1965–66)
    (works from 1959 to 1966) EMF and GRM
    Gérard Frémy (piano)
    EMF CD 037 – 2003
* Comedia dell'amore 224 (1992)
    Performers and composers : Jean-Jacques Birgé, Francis Gorgé, Bernard Vitet and Luc Ferrari
    Un Drame musical instantané "Opération Blow up" GRRR 2020 – distrib. France : Orkhêstra / Les Allumés du Jazz – 1992
* Impro-micro-acoustique (2001)
    Performers and composers : Noël Akchoté, Roland Auzet and Luc Ferrari
    Blue Chopsticks, USA BC12 – distrib. France : Chronowax – 2004
* Collection
    Collection de petites pièces ou 36 Enfilades pour piano et magnétophone (1985)
    Jeu du hasard et de la détermination (1999)
    Michel Maurer (Piano.), Françoise Rivalland (Perc.).
    Les empreintes digitales, France – distribution Abeille Musique (Nocturne) ED13171 – 2004
* Les Anecdotiques
    Les Anecdotiques – Exploitation des Concepts No.6 (2002)
    SUB ROSA SR 207 – 2004
    Grand Prix 2005 Charles Cros in Memoriam
* Archives sauvées des eaux
    Archives sauvées des eaux – Exploitation des concepts No.1 (2000)
    Version for plastic, Milan 2004. By Luc Ferrari and Erikm
    Angle Records, Italie CD 0008 – 2004
    Grand Prix 2005 Charles Cros in memoriam
* Son mémorisé
    Presque Rien No.4 (1990–98)
    Promenade symphonique dans un paysage musical ou Un jour de fête à El Oued en 1976 : (1976–78)
    Saliceburry cocktail (2002)
    Sub Rosa, SR252 – 2006
* Far-West news episodes 2 and 3
    Far-West news episodes 2 (May 1999)
    Far-West news episodes 3 (June 1999)
    Blue Chopsticks BC16 CD September 2006
* Et tournent les sons
    Et tournent les Sons dans la Garrigue – Réflexion sur l'écriture No.1 (1977)
    Archives sauvées des eaux – Exploitation des concepts No.3 (2000)
    By the Ensemble Laborintus and Erikm
    Césaré 06/03/4/2/1 France septembre 2006. Distr. Metamkine
* Les ProtoRythmiques
    Les ProtoRythmiques (2007)
    EriKm (Luc Ferrari) and Thomas Lehn
    Room40 RM417/ May 2007
* Didascalies
    Rencontres fortuites (2003) for viola, piano and memorized sounds.
    Didascalies (2004) for viola and piano
    Tautologos III (1969)
    By Vincent Royer and Jean-Philippe Collard-Neven
    Luc Ferrari facing his tautology – 2 days before the end,
    a film by Guy Marc Hinant and Dominique Lohlé
    Sub Rosa SR261 luc ferrari "didascalies" / cd+ dvd / May 2007
* Sonopsys
    Passage pour mimes (1959)
    J'ai été coupé (1960–69)
    Selbstportrait oder Peinture de sons ou bien Tonmalerei (1996–97)
    Sonopsys 4 – Cahiers musique concrète/acousmatique. May 2007
* in OHM: The Early Gurus of Electronic Music / 1943 – 1980
    Music Promenade (1969)
    Ellipsis arts...... EA500-4 USA
* in Asia – Trio d'argent
    Madame de Shanghaï (1996)
    Michel Boizot / François Daudin Clavaud / Xavier Saint-Bonnet (Flutes)
    Musique d'Aujourd'hui 9701 MDA M7 847 – 1997
* in An anthology of noise & electronic music / vol. #2
    Visage V (1958–59)
    Sub Rosa SR200 – 2003
* in Early modulations : vintage volts
    Tête et queue du dragon (1959–60)
    Caipirinha CP219 USA – 2000
* in Archives GRM – CD 2/5
    Étude aux sons tendus (1958)
    Étude floue (1958)
    Étude aux accidents (1958)
    Ina c 1032(2004) ADD – 750 – 276522
* Chantal, or the portrait of a villager (1977–78)
    stereo tape.
    in collaboration with Brunhild Meyer.
    Digital on-line edition 2008
    Room 40
* Archives Génétiquement Modifiées (2000) – mémorized sound
* Société II (1967)
    for four soloists and sixteen instruments (flute, oboe, clarinet, bassoon, horn, trumpet, trombone, 4 violins, 2 violas, 2 violoncellos, 1 contrabass. Soloists: 1 piano, 3 percussions.) recording from 1968 by the EIMCP dir. Konstantin Simonovich.
    Robot Records, USA
* À la recherche du rythme perdu
    for piano and memorized sound. by Wilhem Latchoumia
    In Wilhem Latchoumia – piano & electronic sounds
    Sisyphe 013
* Madame de Shanghaï (1996)
    for 3 flutes and memorized sound
    In Manuel Zurria repeat !
    Die Schachtel, Zeit C01
* Archives sauvées des eaux – Luc Ferrari with Otomo Yoshihide.
    Bonus-track (CD extra) for the first 2000 copies : « Slow landing » Luc Ferrari with Otomo Yoshihide, Camera: Miyaoka Hideyuki and Nishihara Tazz Miyaoka
    Disc Callithump CPCD-001
* Labyrinthe de violence
    Danse
    LP Alga Marghen
    Disque vinyle PLANA-F alga027 – 2009
* Sexolidad (1982–83)
* Dialogue Ordinaire avec la Machine (1984)
    Elica mpo-4301 – 2009
* INA-GRM Box (2009)
    in partnership with La Muse en circuit [fr],
    contains 10 CD Luc Ferrari’s works for memorized sound as well as film music.
* Chantal (2009)
    stereo tape (1977–78)
    in collaboration with Brunhild Meyer.
    Ohm/Avatar – ohm 051
* DIDASCALIES 2 ou Trois personnages en quête de notes (2005)
    For two pianos and a third very strong instrument capable to uphold a very strong note.
    Claude Berset and Jean-Philippe Collard-Neven, piano – Vincent Royer, viola
    Recorded at La Chaux-de-Fonds, Switzerland
    Vinyl disc Sub rosa SRV 305- April 2010
* TRANQUILLES IMPATIENCES (2010)
    by Brunhild Ferrari recomposing tapes from Luc Ferrari called "Exercices d'Improvisation”
    vinyle disc ALGA MARGHEN – 2010 – plana-MF alga028
* EPHÉMÈRE I & II (1974)
    for tape and undetermined instrumentation
    éphémère I – L'ordinateur ça sert à quoi ? Nov ; 1974
    éphémère II – Lyon 75 Nov. 1975
    ALGA MARGHEN plana f. 33 NMN 081 – 2010
* EXERCICES D'IMPROVISATION (1977)
    Suite of exercices (5 to 7 min. each) – can be individual or collective improvisation for any instrument or instrument group (maximum 8). They are intended for amateurs, professionals or students and may take place in concerts.
    By Gol and Brunhild Ferrari
    Vinyl disc ALGA MARGHEN planam 5 (it) – 2010
* PIANO & PERCUSSION WORKS
    Satoko Inoue piano & Toshiyuki Matsukura percussion
    CONVERSATION INTIME (October 1987 – March 1988) 19:33
for piano and percussion
    VISAGE I (1956) 7:21 for piano
    SONATINE ELYB POUR PIANO (1953–54) – 7 :44 for piano
    CELLULE 75 – FORCE DU RYTHME ET CADENCE FORCEE (May – November 1975) 32:45
    for piano, percussions and tape
    Recorded in 2004 – Hat(now)ART 165 – Jan. 2011 – harmonia mundi
* LUC FERRARI " Madame de Shanghai " – " Après Presque Rien " – " Visage 2 "
    VISAGE 2 (1955–56) – 10'02
    APRES PRESQUE RIEN (2004) – 31'47 (commissioned by Art Zoyd, Musiques Nouvelles and CCMIX)
    MADAME DE SHANGHAI (1996) – 15'22
    By the Scottish Flute Trio and Ensemble Musiques Nouvelles, cond. Jean-Paul Dessy
    Mode 228 – Feb. 2011
* VISITATION (1 avril 2011) – 25'23
    eRikm & Luc Ferrari – The night bird, Cap 15 and night bird, Tuchan, in Presque Rien N0 2
    Vinyle disc Alga Marghen Planam 18 (it) – 2011
* Souvenir, Souvenir
    SUITE (1952)
    SUITE HÉTÉROCLITE
    SONATINE ELYB
    VISAGE I
    COLLECTION DE PETITES PIÈCES OU 36 ENFILADES POUR PIANO ET MAGNÉTOPHONE
    piano : Elmar Schrammel – WERGO 67372
* JETZT ou PROBABLEMENT MON QUOTIDIEN IL EST LA, DANS LA CONFUSION DES LIEUX ET DES MOMENTS – Hörspiel 1982 – 1 h. 45'
    Radio composition for Hessischer Rundfunk. .
    Ferrari (r)écouté
    new compositions with sound material of Ferrari's JETZT tapes from:
    Tiziana Bertoncini – Antje Vowinckel – Frank Niehusmann – David Fenech – Neele Hülcker
    COMPOSER LA RADIO – DAS RADIO KOMPONIEREN
    excerpts from a radio conférence with Luc Ferrari (2000)
    produced by ZKM, Karlsruhe and WERGO. – WERGO ZKM milestones 2066.2 – 2011
* PROGRAMME COMMUN Luc + Brunhild Ferrari
    Double CD
          Luc Ferrari:
    MUSIQUE SOCIALISTE, or PROGRAMME COMMUN POUR CLAVECIN ET BANDE MAGNETIQUE – (1972)
    harpsichord: Elisabeth Chojnacka
    DIDASCALIES 2 – (2005)
    for 2 pianos and a third very powerful instrument that can hold a very loud note : viola
    Jean-Philippe Collard-Neven et Claude Berset : piano. Vincent Royer : viola
    LES EMOIS D’APHRODITE – (1986) Version 1998
    for clarinet, piano, percussion, 2 samplers and memorized sound
    by the ensemble MC BAND, dir. Mary Chun, San Francisco
          Brunhild Ferrari – electroacoustic, with sounds from Luc Ferrari :
    DERIVATIF – (2008)
    BRUMES DU REVEIL – (2009)
    TRANQUILLES IMPATIENCES – (2010)
    Sub Rosa SR363 AB – www.SUBROSA.NET
* LUC FERRARI « PRESQUE RIEN »
    double vinyl discs
    PRESQUE RIEN No.1
    PRESQUE RIEN No. 2
    PRESQUE RIEN AVEC FILLES
    PRESQUE RIEN No. 4 – La remontée du Village
    Recollectio GRM 2012 – REGRM 005 et éditions MEGO – INA GRM
* L. FERRARI
    UND SO WEITER for electric piano and tape
    Gérard Frémy, Piano
    MUSIC PROMENADE original mix
    re-issue of the vinyl disc by WERGO from 1969 – WER 67752 – 2012

## CD and DVD releases

* Didascalies
    Rencontres Fortuites (2003) pour alto, piano et SM.
    Didascalies (2004) pour alto et piano
    Tautologos 3 (1969)
    by Vincent Royer, viola and Jean-Philippe Collard-Neven, piano
    + DVD
    Luc Ferrari face à sa tautologie – 2 jours avant la fin
    Film by Guy-Marc Hinant and Dominique Lohlé
    French version, with English sub-titles, recorded while the rehearsal of Tautologos III.
    "that would be Luc’s last one in this beginning of July 2005.
    Sub Rosa SR261 luc ferrari "didascalies" / cd+ dvd / mai 2007
    This Box was rewarded with the « Coup de Coeur Charles Cros – musique contemporaine printemps 2008 » and the Grand Prix from the festival "Filmer à tout prix", Brussels in 2008
* Presque rien avec Luc Ferrari
    Film by Jacqueline Caux and Olivier Pascal – with Elise Caron – eRikm – Christof Schläger . 2004.
    ELICA VPO-4290
    Robot Records 2008
    Forced Exposure; Métamkine, Fr.; Die Schachtel, It.; Mimaroglu Music Sales; Die Stadt, Germ.; A-Musik, Cologne, Germ.; Empreintes Digitales, Montreal Can.; Disk Union, Tokyo, Jap.
* Les Archives sauvées des Eaux
    Luc Ferrari with Otomo Yoshihide.
    « Slow Landing » Luc Ferrari with Otomo Yoshihide, Camera: Miyaoka Hideyuki and Nishihara Tazz Miyaoka
    Disc Callithump CPCD-001

## Recent book releases

* Collective book, edited by Brunhild Ferrari : Luc Ferrari complete works, London May 2019, 457 p. (ISBN 9781787601536). Published par Ecstatic peace library (UK).
* Presque Rien avec Luc Ferrari
    book by Jacqueline Caux. Discussion with Luc Ferrari.
    Editions Main d’œuvre, Nice – January 2001
    translation into Japanese by Ryosuke Shiina (Tokyo, 2006)
    Luc Ferrari to hotondo nanimo nai.
    Editions Gendaishichô-shinsha (2006), Tokyo, Japan.
    translation into English by Jérôme Hansen.
    Almost Nothing with Luc Ferrari. Editions Errant Bodies (2013)
* Sonopsys No. 4 Luc Ferrari
    Cahiers Musique Concrète / Acousmatique, published by Licences (French – English) – 2007
    by Alexandre Yterce and Florence Gonot
* Luc Ferrari Portraits Polychromes
    supplemented edition by GRM / INA – 2007 – grm@ina.fr
* The Politics of Presque Rien by Eric Drott
    in Sound Commitments (Oxford University Press, 2009).
    P. 145-166. Pdf to download on the website on “bibliography” 2009 page 9
* Luc Ferrari in: In the Blink of an Ear:
    Toward a Non-Cochlear Sonic Art
    by Seth Kim- Cohen. (Continuum, 2009). "Sound-Out-Of-Itself" p. 175-185.
    Pdf to download on the website on “bibliography” 2009 page 9
* Luc Ferrari in : Silence, les couleurs du prisme & la mécanique du temps qui passe. Les Presque Rien – Et Tournent les sons Dans la Garrique by Daniel Caux
    Editions de l’Eclat, Paris. Pages 333–337 (2009)
* Syntone News and Critique of the Radio-Art
    the Radio of Luc (and his listeners)
    Chantal Dumas – François Parra – Irvic Oliver – José Iges – Götz Naleppa – Lucien Bertolina.
    Contributions collected and conducted by Etienne Noiseau. Edited by Etienne Noiseau
* The Bells Angels No. 2
    Magazine TBA No 2 July 2010-07-03 containing the score of
    Monologos (for solo voice and électroacoustic device) – 1970 – as well as
    Concepts (3 excerpts of Jacqueline Caux’ book: Presque Rien avec Luc Ferrari
    éditions nuitdencre galerie 64 rue jean-pierre timbaud – 75011 paris
* The Bells Angels
    Magazine TBA No 3 – 2011
    10 photoengraving-works by Luc Ferrari