This work is based on tape manipulations of sounds generated electronically and recorded on 4-track tape. Ligeti exploited special techniques that initiated his own use of an invented “language.” He exploited the results of his research in phonetics, in which he attempted to establish correlations between speech and musical sound. The basic sounds were transformed into “words”, then “sentences”, and finally “artikulation.” This piece has always attracted me because even though it is purely electronic, it has a human, vocal quality to it. The real vocal music of Ligeti has influenced me greatly as well, by its ability to move the listener in very powerful ways, not necessarily deriving meaning from its texts, but rather from the imagery or “language” in the listener’s own mind.

[source: Réseaux des arts médiatiques]