Scores
When a piece of music is to be performed repeatedly the same way, or performed by people who weren't the originators of the piece, it helps to have a score. In the history of objectifying music, scores were the currency until they were displaced by recordings. There are many types of microtonal notation, such as Sagittal notation, color notation and ups and downs notation.
Historically significant microtonal scores
Check your local gigantic university library. If they don't have it, they could probably be persuaded to get it.
- Charles Ives's Three Quarter Tone Pieces (1923-1924)
- Harry Partch, all works
- Ben Johnston, esp. string quartets
- Alois Hába, esp. string quartets
- Ivan Wyschnegradsky, all microtonal works
- Easley Blackwood, esp. Twelve Microtonal Etudes for Electronic Music Media, op. 28
- publishings of Diapason Press
- this list is so obviously incomplete that you should help finish it.
Links to microtonal scores, by composer
Please contribute to this list of scores that are available (i.e. downloadable). This is meant as a resource for performers interested in microtonal music. Feel free to make wiki pages for "notable" compositions; the wiki supports file attachments up to 10 MB each.
A
B
- De-quinin' for two Bb clarinets (one tuned 33¢ flat)
- Moods for 3 keyboards
- Kluh for 11 performers on 21 tuned bottles
- Eighty-one ninth chords for 2 pianos, 17edo
- Land urchin for string band in 11-limit just intonation
C
- David Canright
- Fibonacci Suite[dead link] for piano retuned to 7-limit JI, seven hands
- L'elisir d'amore Opera using Intonalism, a form of Just Intonation
- Ave Regina A cappella choral work using Intonalism; on same page links to recordings of orchestral works using Intonalism.
D
- On the Enharmonic Tetrachord (from Suite, Op. 62), in 22edo. Originally printed in the Spring 1975 issue of Xenharmonikon in quarter-tone notation. Transcribed to Sagittal by Juhani Nuorvala.
E
F
G
Gann creates tuning guides for many of his pieces, list at the bottom of this page.
- The Day Revisited for flute, clarinet, electric bass, 2 keyboards
- Charing Cross for keyboard and tape
- New Aunts for keyboard
- Triskaidekaphonia for keyboard
- Fugitive Objects for keyboard
- Custer and Sitting Bull, "electronic cantata"
- Love Scene for string quartet
- Kite Giedraitis (Tall Kite)
- Evening Rondo (2021) for solo Kite guitar, 41edo
- Downminor Nocturne (2021) for Kite guitar duet, 41edo
- Without You (2016) for piano/bass/drums/vocal, 7-limit JI
- I Hear Numbers (2016) for synth/keys/guitar/bass/drums/congas/vocals, 7-limit JI
H
- Spiral for chamber ensemble
- Chaconne for James Tenney for chamber ensemble (JI/96edo)
- Due Corde for 2 pianos, 19edo
- Clouds, 72edo
- Prayer of Thanks, 7-limit just intonation
I
J
K
- Goes to Eleven (2009) for ensemble, 11-limit JI
- Three Short Poems (2008) for voices and drones, 5- and 7-limit JI
- Mercy (2008) for voice and drone (and udderbot), 13-limit JI
L
M
N
O
- Mats Öljare
P
Q
R
- Arbor Low for 21-tone Just Intonation guitar
S
- Thomas Edwin Scheurich III
- Three Lonely, Uninspired Ways to Play in 17tet (2006) for 2 pianos
- Attention! Attention! Attention! (2007) for 17-tone ensemble (soprano, udderbot, slide whistles, violin, viola, cello, pianos, laptop, percussion)
- Story Worth Telling (2008) chamber operetta in 17edo
- Xenharmonic Curiosities II (2009) for voices and viola
- Ryan Stickney
- Sharks[dead link] (2008) for 17-tone pianos
T
- Three Quartertone Lullabies for wind trios
- Vigil I and Vigil II for organ
- Little pieces for quartertone piano
- Sarabande for quartertone harpsichord
U
V
- Prelude for Centaur Tuned Piano
- Slumber of Thought (for 65cent equal temperament tuned piano)
W
- Etudes for solo microtonal instruments in equal tunings 8-23
- Figure and Ground for string trio