Listening to Bartok or Ligeti, their sound is what first grabs you. Not like any other music you’ve heard. The dense, haunting chromatic wails, crunches, and clusters in Bartok’s string quartets don’t sound like other string quartets. And Ligeti? While editing 2001: A Space Odyssey, director Stanley Kubrick searched for music that could communicate a feeling of the vast unknown. Leonard Bernstein recommended Ligeti, and that’s how Atmospheres and Lux Aeterna became known to a wider world. Bartok and Ligeti were not simply the two towering Hungarian composers of the 20^th century, but original sonic discoverers who made remarkable sonic breakthroughs that pushed the musical palette of the 20^th century into exciting new frontiers.

These eight Zoom sessions are an interactive online journey into the mysteries of these two composers with piano demonstrations, recording excerpts, and lively discussion that only requires an open mind, your curiosity, and your enthusiasm. No previous musical knowledge necessary.