The four-movement Nox is fabulously effective. Four poets, writing in four different languages, have provided inspiration for totally divergent moods: the setting of Quasimodo's poem is tranquil and meditative, Hans Arp's is bizarre, Eluard's is elegiac while the setting of Eliot's poem is completely ecstatic. Nox with its subtle timbres and rich spectrum of emotions present two aspects of Bergman's creative spirit which, more than every technical experiment, constitute the essence of his artistry.