Kaleidoscopic Topics in the Music of György Ligeti and Thomas Adès

This article applies the concept of isotopy to music to trace the dynamic appearances and interactions of topics in three works by György Ligeti and Thomas Adès. In contrast to previous applications of isotopy to music, the model I propose here is explicitly topic-centered, leading me to a complementary reconfiguring of Johanna Frymoyer’s hierarchy of topical characteristics. My theoretical adaptions are motivated by the observations that: (1) a topic’s identity is often unclear (".fn_cite($Frymoyer_2017).", ".fn_cite($SanchezKisielewska_2023)."), an ambiguity which can be exploited compositionally; (2) the same topic can recur at different degrees of clarity in a single work, leading the listener to draw out a larger structural role for the topic (isotopy) in lieu of clear formal processes in other parameters in this repertoire (harmony, rhythm, etc.); and (3) if multiple topics are engaged, they can relate to one another in formally significant ways. Using the Chorale topic as a case study, I first demonstrate a simple closed isotopy in the second movement of Ligeti’s Violin Concerto, followed by open isotopies of the Chorale and Sound Mass topics in Ligeti’s Hamburg Concerto. Finally, in applying this approach to Thomas Adès’s Piano Quintet I demonstrate how an isotopic analysis can work in dialogue with the familiar trajectory of sonata form. This approach aims to draw out semantic aspects of Ligeti’s and Adès’s highly referential style, which is representative of late-twentieth century, semantically dense, post-collage compositions, filled with familiar topics shifting in and out of focus kaleidoscopically.