Description
An abstract and transcendental composition, The Unanswered Question is an affecting and inventive work for Trumpet, Flute Quartet and Strings, composed in 1906 by great American composer, Charles E. Ives.
The solo Trumpet asks a philosophical question of existence, played regally and seriously, only to be answered by the scornful, mocking answer of the wind section. The Universe is represented by the Strings section which were originally played backstage. With layers of instruments over one another, the individual parts become increasingly dissonant and distant until the strings fade away, leaving only the Trumpet to ask its ‘unanswered question’.
This is an authoritative Critical Edition of the full score and contains a separate commentary insert which details the instrumentation and has an interpretation of Ives’ original score and markings, as well as additional notes and revisions by the composer.