Most complex scores

[greg]

Ever?

and up to a specific year?


For ever, the most complex ones I've seen would be any Ferneyhough (or New Complexity) score that involves many instruments.

For 1915, the most complex score I know of would be Berg's 3 Pieces for Orchestra, especially the March. It's like he studied to death the orchestration of the first movement of the Mahler 9 (and if the 7th was an influence, I wouldn't be surprised, either), and took a small step forward. It's so complex, that for comparison, I took a look at some Carter and Boulez scores, and I have to say, the Berg seems to be even more complex. Also, the first movement of the Mahler 9 is the most complex score I know of up to that date- but, I have looked at some Strauss scores which are up there- I'm not as acquainted with his stuff (what is the most complex piece Strauss has written?)


that influence is acknowledged here, as well as the not of complexity:
http://www.bso.org/images/program_notes/berg_three_pieces_for_orchestra.pdf

[False_Dmitry]

Baude Cordier, Tout par compas.  The Rondeau's own text provides the performance instructions for "unlocking" the piece.

[The new erato]

[Archaic Torso of Apollo]

For 1915, the most complex score I know of would be Berg's 3 Pieces for Orchestra, especially the March. It's like he studied to death the orchestration of the first movement of the Mahler 9 (and if the 7th was an influence, I wouldn't be surprised, either), and took a small step forward. It's so complex, that for comparison, I took a look at some Carter and Boulez scores, and I have to say, the Berg seems to be even more complex.

This seems to be characteristic of Berg. Recently I was looking at some scores in a bookstore and came upon Berg's Piano Sonata. I'd heard this work, and it didn't sound terrifyingly complex. However, it certainly looks terrifyingly complex, with a dense parade of not just notes, but accidentals piling up and cancelling each other out many times over. Gave me a headache just looking at it.

[greg]

This seems to be characteristic of Berg. Recently I was looking at some scores in a bookstore and came upon Berg's Piano Sonata. I'd heard this work, and it didn't sound terrifyingly complex. However, it certainly looks terrifyingly complex, with a dense parade of not just notes, but accidentals piling up and cancelling each other out many times over. Gave me a headache just looking at it.

Lol, I see what you mean- and his orchestral stuff is like this, but may have nearly 30 staves on a page- and for the 3 Pieces, an average page is 20 staves (only a couple out of the 100 pages are split into 2 systems). The most complex parts literally have up to 10 or more distinct lines going on all at the same time (and, of course, there are many doublings of these lines).

Although I kind of like this type of complexity, at the same time, it must be impossible to bring out everything in the music at once. The recording I have is Karajan, and I just heard Abbado yesterday. As great as Karajan is about clarity, there were still so many different things I heard in Abbado.