Metronome hunt for Ligeti piece begins

21 December 2012, 14:50

A forthcoming performance of Ligeti's Poème Symphonique will require 100 metronomes, and the Birmingham Town Hall and Symphony Hall want donations.

The Birmingham Town Hall and Symphony Hall are asking the public to donate any mechanical metronomes they may have lying around for a forthcoming performance.

Hungarian composer György Ligeti's Poème Symphonique requires 100 mechanical metronomes and ten performers (each in charge of ten metronomes) to set off their designated items together, after winding them up to their full extent.

The metronomes are usually set to various different speeds, with the performance typically ending with just one metronome ticking on its own. Ligeti originally meant for the work to be a comment on contemporary music in the early '60s.

The Birmingham performance comes under the banner of the Reich: Influences series on Tuesday March 5th 2013 at the Birmingham Symphony Hall Café Bar. Other events in the series include performances of various Steve Reich works, including Reich himself performing Clapping Music.

Entry for the Ligeti concert is free, and those with mechanical metronomes are encouraged to visit this website.