The subtitle of this piece could be a nod in the direction of Varèse’s Arcana (where it appears as an agogic); it seems to be a continuation of the thought-process of Chiffre I. The furioso piano returns, although it is now juxtaposed with an ensemble twice as large which (in contrastto Chiffre I) is not suppressible; in fact, it occasionally manages to subdue the raging.

Chiffre II is highly dramatic music: eruptive, with sudden, short cries and long, very still passages when, from nowhere, the bass drums burst forth into ffff and the music’s continuity is repeatedly interrupted by silences.