The fact that the French-born American composer Edgard Varèse is deemed to be one of the most innovative and influential composers of the twentieth century is all the more remarkable when one considers that his œuvre consists of just a dozen works, the majority of which were written between 1920 and 1936. Yet his novel developments in the field of rhythm, form and timbre, his works often featuring richly coloured ensembles of wind and percussion, acted as a significant model for composers as diverse as Stockhausen, Xenakis and Birtwistle.