Abstract

György Kurtág (b. 1926) is a composer whose concern with fragmentation runs deep into individual pieces, whilst seeming to splinter his oeuvre. His relatively select number of works includes many that manifestly deal with the notion of ‘the fragment’: the pinnacle of these is his Op. 24, Kafka Fragments (1985–1986). Memory and time play an important role in a listener’s understanding of this work, as the music is woven together by temporally-dislocated connections and timeless associations. Perceptual, analytical and compositional precedents are taken as a starting point for creating a framework in which the notion of fragmentation in Kurtág’s music might be understood.