The piece is structured as an antiphony with fourteen sections in which seven "responses" (marked "très lent") alternate with seven "verses" (marked "modéré"), followed by an extended coda which is, in turn, composed of seven sections. (Regarding the prevalence of the number seven in "Rituel", Susan Bradshaw wrote: "so absolute is the Rule of Seven that it permeates every level of the organization: from the smallest particular detail of pitch and duration, including the number of instruments and instrumental groups, to the number and length of the sections whose sum is the eventual form of the work.") The responses (odd-numbered sections) are marked by dense homophonic writing, with the instrumental groups producing chords that are triggered by the conductor at different times. (Boulez defined homophony as "the direct transformation-by-density of monody—still regarded as unitary".) The verses (even-numbered sections) are more linear, and feature passages of varying length that can be cued by the conductor so as to sound all at once or with staggered entrances, with the result being a heterophonic texture. (Boulez defined heterophony as "the superposition on a primary structure of a modified "aspect" of the same structure... its density will consist of various strata, rather as if several sheets of glass were to be superposed, each one bearing a variation of the same pattern.") The verses are not conducted; instead, groups are cued by the conductor and proceed independently, with each group's tempo maintained by the associated percussionist.