American Innovator's Ode to France

To fall back on the original discussions of the definition of ‘American Innovators’, I think it is highly appropriate that we shift from Ives to Varese. This disrupts all notions that there is a definite link between one’s origin of birth and the style of composition with which one should be associated.

Also appropriate, is the extensive use of innovation coupled with his sound knowledge of science, which Varese seemed to carry throughout his career. The obvious sounds of ‘industrial technologies’ (Robert P. Morgan, 308) give his music the distinct qualities even a tonal ear such as myself, can discern (and almost appreciate).

At first (naïve) glance at his compositional records I thought it interesting that even though he was now an American citizen that he chose to title his works predominantly in French. I realized later that he still maintained strong ties with Europe and that even though USA was his home, he could very possibly still have strong patriotic convictions toward his homeland (don’t we all?).

I don’t necessarily agree with Schick’s opinion that Varese ‘turned his back on Europe’, although this is an interesting point. I do however think that having come from Europe, it was easier for him to turn his back on traditional music without the fear of being labeled ‘uncultured’. For who else could be more cultured than a French man! (a matter for debate, I realize). I also don’t agree with Schick with regards to the possibility that Varese’s earliest works composed in the USA, could not have been composed in Europe. Paris in the early 1920’s was a hussel and bussel of activity as was New York. In fact, it was the strongest power in Europe during the First World War and anything but conservative. Surely Varese’s notion of the “liberation of sound” would have been supported in a country that attracted so many international artists, musicians and writers. But his brief return to Paris between 1928-1933 obviously does not support my argument.

Obviously for Varese, New York was where the action was. Although his approximate 20-year hiatus from composition left him depressed and financially challenged, he still maintained his stubborn frustration toward the timbres and sounds of existing instruments. This fuelled the creative juices that gave way to his famous Poeme electronique.