Amériques
| Amériques | |
|---|---|
| by Edgard Varèse | |
Edgard Varèse in 1915 | |
| Composed | 1918–1921, rev. 1927 |
| Duration | About 23 minutes |
| Scoring | Large orchestra |
| Premiere | |
| Date | April 9, 1926 |
| Conductor | Leopold Stokowski |
| Performers | Philadelphia Orchestra |
| Audio sample | |
A 30-second sample from the original (1921) version of Amériques
| |
Amériques is an orchestral composition by Edgard Varèse, scored for a very large, romantic orchestra with additional percussion (for eleven performers) including sirens. Written between 1918 and 1921 and revised in 1929, it was the first work Varèse composed after he moved to the United States. Although it was not his first work, he destroyed many of his earlier pieces, effectively making Amériques his opus one (although he never used that designation).