The question of whether Henri Dutilleux was a pro- or anti-serialist can be difficult to answer. However, in the 1960s, the composer evidently participated in the serial movement when he composed his two seminal works called Métaboles and Tout un monde lointain. Moreover, in the process of their composition, Dutilleux incorporated serialism into his harmonic language, which was often modal in its widest sense. Therefore, this study aims to reveal the aspects of this incorporation on the basis of sketches related to these compositions and examine the arguments as follows:

1. From the beginning of the composition of Métaboles, the incorporation of serialism into the harmonic language was the composer’s central concern;

2. Because the combination of the two aspects (i.e., serialism and the composer’s harmonic language) did not initially work, he transformed these aspects to create an ideal juxtaposition;

3. After the completion of Métaboles, Dutilleux discovered the concept of “the series (or tone row) of limited transposition.” Using this concept, he constructed a harmonic plan of the next composition called Tout un monde lointain; this composition became an example of his ideal incorporation.

For the first argument, special attention will be paid to the four-page sketch dedicated to Paul Sacher Stiftung by Dutilleux himself with the remark as follows: “Etudes pour 1er de Métaboles, disposition abandonnée par la suite” [Studies for the 1st of Métaboles (‘Incantatoire’), disposition abandoned afterward]. These studies for Incantatoire most likely are the first drafts of Métaboles. In the abovementioned sketch, the dodecaphonic tone row (i.e., D-E♭-A♭-G♭-E-F-B-A-B♭- C-D♭-G) is observed to be harmonized by various diatonic chords, as well as its subset and superset. This characteristic reflects his first attempt at combining serialism with his harmonic language; however, he abandoned it later.

Regarding the second argument, a comparison of these studies with the completed score shows that the harmonic plan of ‘Incantatoire’ was completely transformed during the composition. For example, as found in the sketches, the original dodecaphonic tone row and the diatonic chords that harmonized it were replaced with whole-tone melodic fragments and chords of contracted harmonic series (“chords of contracted resonance,” in Olivier Messiaen’s term), respectively, in the completed score.

Note that the constitutive elements of these studies, namely, the tone row and the harmonization by the diatonic chords, were transferred to the consecutive movements. For example, the latter was transferred to the second movement, ‘Linéaire’, whereas the former to the third movement, ‘Obsessionnel’. As a result, an evolution of sonority occurs from natural resonance (first movement), via diatonic (second movement), to dodecaphonic or serial (third movement). This suggests that Dutilleux transformed his first attempt at combining his harmonic language with serialism to create an ideal juxtaposition. Moreover, when the notion of the tone row was transferred to the third movement, remarkably, the tone row itself was completely redressed. The dodecaphonic tone row in these studies (i.e., D-E♭-A♭-G♭-E-F-B- A-B♭-C -D♭-G) comprised the subsets of two different octatonic collections that were alternately combined: A♭, B♭, B, D♭, D, E; and E♭, F, G♭, A, C, G. Conversely, the tone row redressed for the third movement of the completed Métaboles (i.e., A#-E-D#-A-G#-D- C#-G-F#-C-B-F-E-B♭) consists of two diatonic collections (a tritone apart); these collections were again alternately combined: B, C#, D#, E, F#, G#, A#; and F, G, A, B♭, C, D, E.

Notably, the new tone row of Métaboles is the staggered combination of ascending fourths. However, in this tone row of 14 notes, E and B♭/A# have been doubled. Thus, when skipping the first A# and eliminating the last E, the tone row is practically defined as E-D#-A- G#-D-C#- G-F#-C-B-F-B♭, whereas when skipping the last B♭ and eliminating the first E, the tone row (in its reversed order) is E-F-B-C-F#-G-C#-D-G#-A-D#-A#. As a result, the prime inversion is the same as the retrograde, and the prime itself is the same as the retrograde inversion. In short, a parsimonious property has been introduced in the tone row.

Concerning the third argument, significant importance is given to another sketch also dedicated to Paul Sacher Stiftung with the remark as follows: “Esquisses pour Tout un monde lointain (Fragment, au crayon, de la réduction d’orchestre–très incomplet)” [Sketches for Tout un monde lointain (fragment, in pencil, of the orchestral reduction—very incomplete)]. This sketch contains some memoranda written by Dutilleux for his personal use. The most interesting one is found at the beginning of the fourth movement in which there are six consecutive notes (C-F#- A♭-G-E♭-B, with the first five notated on the stave and the last by a letter): “Penser aux différents renversements (synthèse harmonique du motif de la première partie, utilisé également pour la 4ème” [Think of different inversions (harmonic summary of the motif of the first movement, used also for the fourth)]. This memorandum not only testifies that a harmonic link exists between the first and fourth movements but also reveals the harmonic conception of the tone row in this work, which is deduced from the motif and used as the basis of the first movement.

Finally, the set of six consecutive notes in these aforementioned sketches should importantly be a subset of the enneatonic collection (or the “third mode of limited transposition,” in Messiaen’s term) that includes only four possible transpositions. In effect, its harmonic properties are inherited in the tone row of the work (i.e., F#-C-A♭-G-E♭-E-B- A#-D-C#-F-A). In addition, the first nine notes of this tone row constitute exactly the enneatonic collection, and its first six and final six notes constitute the subsets of the two transpositions of the same collection. Furthermore, when the tone row is inverted, its first nine notes also constitute the enneatonic collection, and its first six and final six notes constitute the subsets of the other two transpositions of the same collection. In this manner, the parsimonious properties of the enneatonic collection were integrated into the tone row and completely exploited in Dutilleux’s dodecaphonic writing. Consequently, serialism is ideally incorporated into his modal harmonic language on the basis of “the series (or tone row) of limited transposition.”