Giacinto Scelsi (1905-1988) was one of the most original Italian composers of the last century. He was born into a wealthy, Italian, aristocratic family, a circumstance which allowed him to compose without the necessity of making a living. He played the piano from an early age, before studying composition when in his 30s with Walter Klein, a pupil of Schoenberg's, and then with the Skryabin enthusiast Egon Koehler. Scelsi absorbed the influences of his teachers in this period, using Schoenberg's…
Giacinto Scelsi (1905-1988) was one of the most original Italian composers of the last century. He was born into a wealthy, Italian, aristocratic family, a circumstance which allowed him to compose without the necessity of making a living. He played the piano from an early age, before studying composition when in his 30s with Walter Klein, a pupil of Schoenberg’s, and then with the Skryabin enthusiast Egon Koehler. Scelsi absorbed the influences of his teachers in this period, using Schoenberg’s techniques to write twelve-tone music, but also writing in a freely atonal style. Scelsi wrote over 100 works, including several large pieces for orchestra, and works for chamber ensemble, string quartets, and solo and duo pieces. Many of his pieces were worked out in improvisation and subsequently written down. Scelsi’s music was widely played at the end of his life, when his sudden importance was recognized and he was lifted up as one of the most original composers of the 20th century. He had a great impact on many younger artists, particularly in Rome and Paris – especially from the 1960s onwards.