Xenakis: Large-Scale Spatial Composition

This section introduces early approaches to spatial music that predate standardized multichannel concert formats. The focus is on Iannis Xenakis and his use of large-scale, site-specific multichannel sound, with particular attention to Persepolis (1971).

Iannis Xenakis

Iannis Xenakis (1922–2001) occupies a singular position in the history of electroacoustic and spatial music. Trained as both composer and architect, his work consistently treats sound as a physical phenomenon operating at the scale of masses, environments, and architectural spaces.

Persepolis (1971)

Persepolis is one of the earliest and most extreme examples of spatial electroacoustic music conceived outside the concert hall.

Fixed 8-channel tape
Outdoor, site-specific realization
Duration approximately 55–60 minutes
Commissioned for the Shiraz Arts Festival
Performed at the ruins of Persepolis, Iran

Loudspeakers were distributed across the archaeological site, using the terrain and architecture as part of the acoustic system. Spatial perception emerges from immersion and physical impact rather than localization precision.

Spatial Concepts

No fixed loudspeaker geometry
No standardized spatial encoding
Strong dependence on site and scale
Space treated as volume rather than direction

Other Relevant Multichannel Works

Bohor (1962)
Hibiki-Hana-Ma (1970)
La Légende d’Eer (1978)

Position in the Spatial Music Curriculum

Xenakis’ work is included here as an early example of spatial composition in which sound, space, and architecture are conceptually inseparable, rather than as a model of a standardized multichannel technique.