Tag Archives: Muziekgebouw aan ‘t IJ

Jennifer Walshe composes Mars I: ‘My robots follow the trajectory of the Perseverance Rover’

Posted on May 17, 2022 by Thea Derks

In collaboration with AMMODO, Muziekgebouw aan ‘t IJ regularly presents brand new compositions intended to reach a general audience. In the afternoon, a piece is worked on extensively in a public rehearsal; in the evening, the world premiere is performed. … Continue reading →

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Tapping and hi-hatting clarinettist in Keyla Orozco’s Estudio del Pajarillo

Posted on April 9, 2021 by Thea Derks

Though in the last decade she has been living in the United States, Keyla Orozco still has a strong bond with the Netherlands. On 11 April clarinettist David Kweksilber will perform her Estudo del pajarillo for a live stream from … Continue reading →

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Why I hope to meet the twenty-something members of a reading club at the Dutch premiere of Olga Neuwirth’s soundtrack to ‘Die Stadt ohne Juden’

Posted on February 13, 2020 by Thea Derks

‘If it happens once, it can happen again.’ These admonishing words from the Italian-Jewish concentration camp survivor Primo Levi are more topical than ever. Neo-Nazis in Germany shout Hitler’s slogans with impunity, in the Netherlands the largest political party (Forum … Continue reading →

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‘Composing for today’: John Adams wins Erasmus Prize 2019

Posted on November 26, 2019 by Thea Derks

‘He has made contemporary classical music communicative again’, writes the jury of the Erasmus Prize about John Adams. This year’s theme was ‘Composing for today’, an area in which the American composer has more than earned his spurs. On Thursday … Continue reading →

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‘Wikileaks has never been caught on a single error’ – Iris ter Schiphorst writes Assange: Fragmente einer Unzeit

Posted on November 5, 2019 by Thea Derks

‘There is an information war going on at the moment, which shows how important data are. The Assange case is the most poignant example of this,’ says the Dutch-German composer Iris Ter Schiphorst. She addresses this theme in Assange: Fragmente … Continue reading →

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Composer Vladimir Martynov: ‘The sweetest moment is when you get a bright idea’

Posted on April 2, 2019 by Thea Derks

In April the Noord Nederlands Orkest (North Netherlands Orchestra, NNO) will present the brand new piano concerto Pastiche, composed by Vladimir Martynov at the request of Ralph van Raat. On 2 April I will talk to the composer and the … Continue reading →

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Hilda Paredes immortalises Afro-American freedom fighter in her opera ‘Harriet’.

Posted on October 16, 2018 by Thea Derks

Zojuist verschenen: Een os op het dak: moderne muziek na 1900 in vogelvlucht On Friday 9 November Harriet by Hilda Paredes will be performed in November Music, in a production by Muziektheater Transparant. The opera is dedicated to the legendary … Continue reading →

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Een os op het dak: “Een must voor muziekliefhebber en onderwijs”

Posted on September 10, 2018 by Thea Derks

Donderdag 13 september werd Een os op het dak: moderne muziek na 1900 in vogelvlucht gelanceerd in Muziekgebouw aan ‘t IJ. Ik overhandigde het officiële eerste exemplaar aan componist Richard Ayres, wiens muziektheatrale werk The Garden zijn Amsterdamse première beleefde in een uitvoering door … Continue reading →

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Ligeti festival – ode to an adventurous and idiosyncratic composer

Posted on April 1, 2018 by Thea Derks

The Hungarian composer György Ligeti (1923-2006) suffered under several dictatorships. The Nazis killed his father and brother during World War II, and after the war the communists forced him to write bland ‘folk music’. After the Hungarian uprising of 1956 … Continue reading →

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Cappella Amsterdam presents Baltic Souls: Estonia 100 years independent/non-independent

Posted on February 26, 2018 by Thea Derks

Although Estonia is nearly 4000 square kilometres larger than the Netherlands, it has barely more inhabitants than the province of Utrecht. For centuries, powers such as Denmark, Germany, Russia, Sweden and Poland disputed the rule of this country on the … Continue reading →

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