And Stockhausen saw that it was good - aus LICHT in Holland Festival #HF19

'Then he could split into three and was a singer, dancer and trumpeter,' says a girl on screen prior to Michaels Jugend. She is one of the little children who tell at the beginning of each day where OUT LIGHT is about. A good find by Pierre Audi and his artistic team, because the universe Karlheinz Stockhausen presents us with in his mega-opera LIGHT is a wonderful mix of childlike naivety, higher mathematics, religious symbolism and highly personal mysticism. The selection of 15 from the original 29 hours presented by the Holland Festival is overwhelming. - If only I too could split into three to write this review.

You can see and hear from everything that years of intensive work have gone into aus LICHT. The performances by a combination of master students, young pros and established ensembles are without exception top-notch. Set and lighting plan by Urs Schönebaum are breathtaking, costumes by Wojciech Dziedzic dazzling. They help tell the story, aided by atmospheric electronic sounds in surround sound and video footage shot live. These are projected in twothree and plural on immense video screens, which provide a larger than live experience. Pity only that the visuals are not lip-sync.

Once in a lifetime

To be immersed for three days in Stockhausen's private world of sound and thought is indeed a once in a lifetime experience. Impressive how he managed to cast his grand visions in sound in the most diverse line-ups. From brass bands to large ensembles and from solo singing to grand choirs. His unique sound world cannot be compared to any other composer. At most, we sometimes hear a vague resemblance to Claude Vivier in the vocal pieces. - But then he studied with Stockhausen.

It is characterised by many repeated notes in an endless variety of performance techniques. The notes are punched fast or slow, incited with false airs and hisses, performed in impossibly high or low positions and laced with prattle, mini glissandi, shrieks, kiss-suck and tss sounds. Moreover, both instrumentalists and singers regularly count from one to thirteen and back in all sorts of combinations. This refers to the formula (tone series) of Archangel Michael, which consists of 13 tones. Together with primordial mother Eve (12 tones), he fights the fallen angel Lucifer, who has only 11 tones. Perhaps this is why the 'R' in numbers three and four is invariably performed loudly rolling.

Genius and megalomaniac

A second constant are the sustained (collaborative) sounds that envelop us like a warm blanket. They serve as the backdrop against which the rhythmically often very layered 'actions' of instrumentalists and singers are set. Sing-along melodies and recognisable pulse are missing, yet - or precisely because of this - you are irresistibly carried along. Even if there is no string to be tied, the magic of Stockhausen's self-created universe is inescapable. Is it genius? Definitely. Is it megalomaniacal? Of course. But what the heck, those who do not dare to think big will never achieve anything.

A highlight on day one is Michaels Jugend, with superb solo singing by Georgi Sztojanov, who moves as Michael and Pia Davola as Eva. On day two, flautist Felicia van den End steals the show as Pied Piper. With raving virtuoso playing and ditto gestures, she kidnaps the wonderfully singing children of the National Children's Choir and National Boys' Choir. A deception is the musically densely plastered Luzifers Tanz with unsavoury video footage of a beak-pulling man. Impressive though is trumpeter Chloë Abbott, who rebuts Lucifer with splashing and flawless playing.

The Helicopter string quartet of day three, with its endless vibrati, is too uniform to remain captivating. In contrast, the lighter Welt-Parlament, with contagiously twittering through each other at a symposium on love. Aus LICHT concludes with the tuneful Engel-Prozessionen. Monk's robes-clad singers deliver a message of peace and love in seven languages, ending in German. 'Gott liebt uns... Gott hilft uns durch Micheva Emivael am Sonntag aus LICHT.' - And Stockhausen saw that it was good.

In 2006, I spoke to Karlheinz Stockhausen about LIGHT. You can listen to our conversation back here.