Hymnen

Hymnen (German for "Anthems") is an electronic and concrete work, with optional live performers, by , composed in 1966–67, and elaborated in 1969. In the composer's catalog of works, it is "Nr. 22".

The quadraphonic electronic and concrete music of Hymnen was realised at the Electronic Music Studio of the Westdeutscher Rundfunk (WDR) in Cologne. The world première was of the version with soloists, and took place on 30 November 1967 in a concert of the WDR concert series Musik der Zeit, at the auditorium of the Apostel Secondary School in Cologne-Lindenthal (, 96). The soloists were Aloys Kontarsky, piano, Johannes G. Fritsch, viola, Harald Bojé (), electronium, and Rolf Gehlhaar and David Johnson, percussion. Sound technicians were David Johnson and Werner Scholz, sound direction by the composer.

Between January and April 1969, in Madison, Connecticut, Stockhausen created a new version of the Third Region of Hymnen by adding a part for orchestra. This was to fulfill a commission from Leonard Bernstein and the New York Philharmonic, which was originally to have been for a never-completed work titled Projektion. The world premiere of the "Third Region with Orchestra" was given by the New York Philharmonic conducted by Stockhausen in Philharmonic Hall, New York, on 25 February 1971 as part of a special non-subscription concert of the New York Philharmonic, together with the American premiere of the other three regions of Hymnen in the version with soloists (Kurtz 1992, 170–71, 186–87). The programme, which started fifteen minutes late due to an unprecedented demand for tickets, lasted for three hours (with two intervals) and was "the longest Philharmonic concert of the last generation, and, for all we know, in Philharmonic history" (Schonberg 1971a; (Schonberg 1971b)). The first part consisted of the first and the first half of the second region, and was performed with the soloists of Stockhausen's group; after the first interval came the "Third Region with Orchestra", which actually begins halfway through region 2; the third part consisted of the fourth region, again with the soloists of Stockhausen's ensemble: Aloys Kontarsky (piano), Harald Bojé (electronium), Christoph Caskel () (percussion), and Péter Eötvös (55-chord) (Heyworth 1971; , 85–87).

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