STOCKHAUSEN: KONTAKTE/GESANG DER JÜNGLINGE 1968 MINT-

TWO 20th CENTURY ELECTRONIC MASTERPIECES, SUPERB COPY

KARLHEINZ STOCKHAUSEN
GESANG DER JÜNGLINGE (1953)
KONTAKTE (1960)


ORIGINAL 1968 DG GERMAN PRESSING OF TWO OF THE MOST IMPORTANT 20th CENTURY ELECTRONIC WORKS; STOCKHAUSEN'S 'GESANG DER JÜNGLINGE' (1953) AND KONTAKTE (1960)

THE RECORD IS IN EXCEPTIONAL, POSSIBLY COMPLETELY UNPLAYED CONDITION DELIVERING PRISTINE AUDIO THROUGHOUT TO WHAT ARE THE DEFINITIVE RECORDINGS OF THESE TWO STUNNING PIECES

PRESSED WITH THE FIRST YELLOW, LARGE TULIP DG LABELS WITH STAMPED '1968' IN THE RUN-OFF
THE RECORD IS HOUSED IN THE ORIGINAL FULLY LAMINATED SLEEVE
AND COMES COMPLETE WITH THE ORIGINAL POLY-LINED, DG INNER SLEEVE

GESANG DER JÜNGLINGE (SONG OF THE YOUTHS) (1953)
Gesang der Jünglinge (literally "Song of the Youths") is a noted electronic music work realised in 1955–56 at the Westdeutscher Rundfunk studio in Cologne.
The work, routinely described as "the first masterpiece of electronic music" and "an opus, in the most emphatic sense of the term", is significant in that it seamlessly integrates electronic sounds with the human voice by means of matching voice resonances with pitch and creating sounds of phonemes electronically.
In this way, for the first time ever it successfully brought together the two opposing worlds of the purely electronically generated German elektronische Musik and the French Musique Concrète, which transforms recordings of acoustical events.
Gesang der Jünglinge is also noted for its early use of spatiality; it was originally in five-channel sound, which was later reduced to just four channels (mixed to monaural and later to stereo for commercial recording release).
When composing Gesang der Jünglinge, Stockhausen attempted to expand on the earlier work of Anton Webern, and composed the piece as a work of Total serialism, serialising the pitch, duration, dynamics, and timbre of every electronic and vocal event.

KONTAKTE (1960)
Kontakte ("Contacts") is a celebrated electronic music work by Karlheinz Stockhausen, realised in 1958-60 at the Westdeutscher Rundfunk (WDR) electronic-music studio in Cologne
The title of the work “refers both to contacts between instrumental and electronic sound groups and to contacts between self-sufficient, strongly characterised moments. In the case of four-channel loudspeaker reproduction, it also refers to contacts between various forms of spatial movement”
According to the composer, “In the preparatory work for my composition Kontakte, I found, for the first time, ways to bring all properties [i.e., timbre, pitch, intensity, and duration] under a single control” (Stockhausen 1962), thereby realising a longstanding goal of total serialism.
On the other hand, as one commentator says, "Kontakte is arguably the last of Stockhausen's tape pieces in which serial proportions intervene decisively at anything but the broad formal level".
The most famous moment, at the very centre of the work, is a potent illustration of these connections: a high, bright, slowly wavering pitch descends in several waves, becoming louder as it gradually acquires a snarling timbre, and finally passes below the point where it can be heard any longer as a pitch.
As it crosses this threshold, it becomes evident that the sound consists of a succession of pulses, which continue to slow until they become a steady beat.
With increasing reverberation, the individual pulses become transformed into tones once again
Stockhausen also made advances over his previous electronic composition, Gesang der Jünglinge, in the realm of spatial composition, adding the parameters of spatial location, group type, register, and speed.
Kontakte is composed in four channels, with loudspeakers placed at the corners of a square surrounding the audience.
With the aid of a "rotation table", consisting of a rotatable loudspeaker surrounded by four microphones, he was able to send sounds through and around the auditorium with unprecedented variety.

LABELS: The labels are clean, fresh and unmarked with no evident spindle traces - beautiful copy - possibly unplayed - MINT
VINYL Visual: The vinyl surfaces still retain their original deep, like-new glossy sheen and are completely unmarked - MINT
VINYL Audio: Stunning audio with a crystal clear, sharp, rich sound which has tremendous clarity, stereo separation and a deep, deep bass response - beautifully recorded and engineered (and the finest recordings of these two works I've heard). On playback at a loud volume (which is how I always listen to my LPs prior to listing and it's always a real pleasure to return to these masterpieces) there are no scratches, no sticks or jumps, no loud clicks or pops and no surface noise. The whole LP sounds sensational throughout and has no groove-wear and no distortion (its possibly never been played). Graded MINT for audio - a fantastic original 1968 copy
SLEEVE: The fully laminated sleeve is also in beautiful condition - clean, crisp and fresh with just a light knock to the top edge (very minor - please see close-up photo) - NEAR MINT

PLEASE HAVE A LOOK AT MY PICTURES - I USUALLY TAKE QUITE A FEW SO YOU CAN GET A CLEAR INDICATION OF EVERY DETAIL OF THE ITEM
I HAVE UPLOADED AS MANY AS I CAN BUT I WOULD BE MORE THAN HAPPY TO SUPPLY ANY ADDITIONAL PHOTOS ON REQUEST
PLEASE CHECK OUT MY OTHER AUCTIONS FOR MORE RARE AND COLLECTABLE VINYL
AND PLEASE DO NOT HESITATE TO CONTACT ME WITH ANY QUERIES YOU MAY HAVE
THANKS FOR LOOKING, CHEERS

PLEASE REFER TO MY 'ABOUT ME' PAGE FOR MORE DETAILED INFO ON MY PLAY-GRADING, EQUIPMENT USED, P&P etc

POST & PACKING
UK: 1st Class: FREE or £1.00 (recorded delivery)
EUROPE: Airmail: £5.00 or £9.50 (International Signed For delivery with tracking)
INTERNATIONAL: Airmail: £9.00 or £13.50 (International Signed For delivery with tracking)
***Any record (or combination of records) which sells for more than £40 MUST be sent by a trackable method ie INTERNATIONAL SIGNED FOR or RECORDED (UK)

UK bidders: PayPal or Cheque
INTERNATIONAL bidders: PayPal ONLY

REDUCED POSTAGE FOR MULTIPLE ITEMS (EACH ADDITIONAL LP: EUROPE & INTERNATIONAL £2.00)
I will combine postage for items purchased within any 10 day period. However, at the end of each 10 day period, all outstanding items will need to be paid for in full and will be posted to you. Any items purchased after payment will be included in the next 10 period. I am continually adding new items which may be of interest to you and it is impractical for me to allow payment to be postponed indefinitely in the expectation that you might wish to bid on future items. Thank you for your understanding and cooperation
Guarantee: I try to be as accurate and honest as possible when describing the condition of any LP but of course if you feel that I am mistaken and the description is inaccurate I will offer a complete, no quibble refund (through Paypal) upon return of the item.

ALL RECORDS ARE PROFESSIONALLY CLEANED BEFORE DISPATCH AND PACKAGED WITH THE VINYL OUTSIDE OF THE SLEEVE TO PREVENT ANY 'KNIFING' DURING TRANSIT
A PROTECTIVE POLY SLEEVE, QUALITY CUSTOM MAILER AND STIFFENERS ARE ALWAYS USED TO ENSURE THAT YOUR RECORD ARRIVES SAFELY

I will email you when payment has been received to let you know when the item will be posted. Please leave feedback upon receipt of the item so that I know you have received it safely. Any problems please email me. Thanks
 417 (GS 6.0.5 (417))