Sonata. for viola solo. viola.

'Apparently the viola is just a somewhat larger violin, simply tuned a fifth lower. In reality though, there is a world of difference between the two instruments. ' - The composer lends weight to his argument with this impressive 'real' viola piece : extreme high notes are avoided, indeed, one movement is played exclusively on the C string. Instrumentation : viola

With this sonata, already well-estabished as an essential part of the viola repertoire, Ligeti managed to anticipate the current trend for 'worldmusic' by incorporating various ethnic (Romania, Bulgaria, Macedonia, Ivory Coast) elements with traditional dance forms and reference to virtuosic jazz riffs. This fusion is characterised by natural intervals and harmonics, daring changes of position, double stopping, 'loony' modulations and occasional pseudo-tonalities.
Particularly surprising is the first movement which is played only on the C-string. Besetzung : viola