In this concert, the London Sinfonietta performs music which Varèse wrote between 1930 and 1960. Included are some of his most characterful and best known works, from the wailing sirens and pounding industrial soundscapes of Ionisation for 13 percussionists to Density 21.5, in which a solo flute seems to call out to the universe and the dark and strange evocation of an ancient Mayan prayer in Ecuatorial. This concert presents Varèse as a sonic explorer whose music is uncomprisingly futuristic, while seeming to have existed since the beginning of time.