Palimpsests

A palimpsest is a manuscript whose original text has been scraped
or washed away and overwritten with a new one, often many times
over.  The original text is still present but visible only
in fragments.


This concept has inspired composers to overlay music in similar
ways to fascinating effect. We feature a small sample of musical
palimpsests. Music by Kevin Ernste, George Benjamin, Paul Novak
and Gabriel Kahane.