It finished in 1975 and was premiered at the Queen Elizabeth Hall in January 1976 by the London Sinfonietta with long-time collaborator and conductor Michel Tabachnik.
At a regular 44, as in most of Xenakis's compositions, time signatures serve as references points for musicians, but they are not expected to play accents or mark downbeats.
[1] As in Empreintes, he also uses avant-garde techniques, such as melodic arborescences in the woodwinds and brass, brownian movements in the strings, and rhythmic patterns played by repeating specific notes.
[3] The composition is also notable for its use of consecutive glissandi: each note in the main melodies is meant to be played without any real separation, as they are merely points of reference in a continuous glissando, both up and down.
Flutist Emmanuelle Ophèle, oboist László Hadady, clarinetists Alain Damiens and Guy Arnaud, bassoonist Pascal Gallois, hornist Jacques Deleplancque, trumpetist Antoine Curé, trombonists Jérôme Naulais and Benny Sluchin, violinist Jeanne-Marie Conquer, violist Jean Sulem, cellist Pierre Strauch, and double bassists Frédéric Stochl and Alex Bouchaud recorded the piece in July 1990.