"I have just begun a work in which an important part is given to a large chorus and with it I want to use several of your instruments - augmenting their range as in those I used for my Equatorial - especially in the high range"

Edgard Varèse, a pioneering composer known for his original approach to timbre and instrumentation, references his creative process and artistic goals in this statement. He mentions embarking on a new composition that features a significant role for a large chorus, highlighting his ongoing exploration of blending traditional vocal forces with innovative instrumental colors. Varèse’s desire to incorporate several unique instruments reflects his lifelong fascination with expanding the sonic palette available to composers.

He specifically notes his intention to extend the instruments' range, particularly their upper or high register. This ambition aligns with Varèse’s broader pursuits: pushing the boundaries of conventional instrument capabilities, seeking new forms of musical expression, and redefining what music could sound like in the 20th century. By referencing "Equatorial", a prior composition of his, Varèse points to his ongoing experimentation with both electronic instruments and traditional ones redesigned or modified for new effects. "Equatorial" itself was known for utilizing not only voices and orchestra but also early electronic instruments, such as the ondes Martenot and other siren-like devices, which expanded the available sound world into realms previously untouched.

Varèse’s request to augment the range of the instruments signifies his dissatisfaction with the limitations imposed by existing instrument design and his pursuit of sonorities previously unpublished in Western music. The high register, in particular, tends to evoke a sense of brightness, intensity, or otherworldliness, qualities Varèse likely sought to emphasize in his new choral work. Inviting the collaboration of instrument makers or technicians to adapt instruments echoes his larger ethos: that technology and innovation are essential engines for the evolution of musical language.

Ultimately, Varèse’s remark foreshadows not only the specifics of the musical project at hand but encapsulates his role as a visionary, relentlessly searching for new means to articulate sound, challenge the audience, and harness the full expressive capacities of human artistry fused with technological ingenuity.