9/6/2015

WolfgangRihmBiographyUniversalEdition

UniversalEditionWolfgangRihmBiography

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WolfgangRihm
Biography

WolfgangRihmwasbornon13March1952inKarlsruhe,acityneartheFrenchandSwissborders,atastonesthrowfrom
StrasbourgandBasel,twoofthemanyplaceswhereheandhismusicareathome.Helivestheretothisdayinaspacious
apartmentnotonlyfullofbooksandscoresthoseonetakesforgrantedbutalsoofpaintingsbycontemporaryartists,mainly
byKurtKocherscheidt,theAustrianpainterwithwhomRihmwasbefriendedandtowhomhehasdedicatedanumberofworks.
Rihmiscomposer,professorofcompositionattheMusicAcademyofhisnativecity(wherehisstudentsincludedVykintas
BaltakasandJrgWidmann),aremarkablewriteronmusicwithseveralbookstohisname,includingcollectionsofhisarticles
andinterviews.HealsositsonanumberofinfluentialcommitteesinGermanyandhasasayindecisionsaffectingtheworking
conditionsofhisfellowmusicians.
Nodoubtaboutit:WolfgangRihmisauniquephenomenon,largerthanlife.Hisknowledgeofmusic(theartandcraftof
compositionaswellasofmusichistoryfromancienttimesuptothepresentday)isvast.Buthealsoseemstoknoweverything
worthknowingaboutliterature,painting,architecture,philosophyandhefreelydrawsonthoseassourcesofinspiration.Alook
atthetextshehassettomusicisanindicationofthebreadthofhisculture:fromHomerthroughHlderlinandGoethetoRilke,
BothoStraussandDursGrnbein.
Theworldhehascreatedwithhiscompositionswhichnowoutnumber400worksisaveritableuniverse.Assuch,itcannotbe
pidgeonholed.ToparaphrasethetitleofawellknownBritishfilmonThomasMore,heisacomposerforallseasons.Rihmhas
written'newmusic'asitiscommonlycalledandsomeofhistitleshavebecomesignpostsinthehistoryofpostwarmusic.
Soloists,chambergroupsandorchestrasprogrammetheseworksasamatterofcoursenow,theyhavebecomeanintegralpart
oftherepertoire(JagdenundFormen,Chiffrecycle,PolKolchisNucleus).Ofsimilarsignificancearethecompositions
whichtaketheircue,asitwere,frommusicofpastcenturies:oratorioswithJohannSebastianBachasapointofreference
(DeusPassus),orchestralpiecesofBrahmsiansoundandgesture(ErnsterGesang,DasLesenderSchrift),chambermusic
inthewakeofRobertSchumann(FremdeSzenen).
Alreadyattheageof25,hecomposedachamberopera(JakobLenz)thathassinceproveditselfasprobablythemostoften
producedpieceofcontemporarymusictheatreinGermany.JakobLenzhasbeenfollowedbyaseriesoflargescaleoperas(Die
Hamletmaschine,DieEroberungvonMexico,DasGehege)aswellasaworkofexperimentalmusictheatre(Sraphin).
WolfgangRihmisoneoftheforemostsongcomposersofourtimeshisstringquartets(ofwhichtherearefarmorethanthe
twelvenumberedones)areoftenpresentedincyclesbyawiderangeofgroups.
Rihmisacomposerwhoputsagiantquestionmarkoverwhateverheisdoing.Eachnewworkisananswertothequestion
raisedbythepreviouspieceeachnewworkposesquestionswhichhewillseekareplytointhecompositiontobewrittennext.
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Therecomeaboutworkcycles,workfamilieswhichformawebwithothercyclesandindividualpiecesawebonlytobe
graspedbytheinitiated.Everythingisinpermanentgrowth,workneverstops,newcompositionsareproduced,broughtinto
intriguingrelationshipswithotherworks,revisedandsupplemented.
Ifyouconsiderthatheisalsoaremarkabledraughtsmanandifyoureadthepoemhehaswrittenfor/aboutthetrumpet
concertoMarsyas,youwillhavetoadmitthatWolfgangRihmisindeedlargerthanlife.

1952BornMarch13thinKarlsruhe,southwestGermany
1963Firstcompositions
19681972SecondarySchool(HumanistischesGymnasium)simultaneouslystudiesincompositionattheKarlsruheMusic
Academy(EugenWernerVelte)
furthercompositionstudieswithWolfgangFortnerandHumphreySearle
1970AttendstheDarmstadtSummerCoursesforthefirsttime
1972Completessecondaryschoolstudies,diplomaincomposition,KarlsruheMusicAcademy
1972/1973CompositionstudieswithKarlheinzStockhauseninCologne
19731976CompositionstudieswithKlausHuberandmusicologicalstudieswithHansHeinrichEggebrechtinFreiburg
19731978TeachesattheKarlsruheMusicAcademy
1974AwardedtheCityofStuttgartPrize
1975AwardedtheCityofMannheimPrize
1976FaustundYorickchamberoperaNo1(JeanTardieu/FrithjofHaas)
1977/1978JakobLenzchamberoperaNo2(GeorgBchner/MichaelFrhling)
1978AwardedBerlinArtPrizeFellowshipKranichsteinMusicPrizeDarmstadt
ReinholdSchneiderPrizeFreiburg
since1978LecturerattheDarmstadtSummerCourses
1979ReceivesFellowshipAwardoftheCityofHamburg
1979/1980GermanArtAcademyFellowshipattheVillaMassimoinRome
1981AwardedtheCityofBonnBeethovenPrize.TeachesattheMunichMusicAcademy
since1982Presidiummember,GermanAssociationofComposers
1983FellowshipattheCitdesArtsinParis
1983/1986DieHamletmaschine,opera,(HeinerMller/Rihm)
1984/1985FellowoftheBerlinScienceInstitute,Presidiummember,GermanMusicCouncil
19841989CoeditorofthemusicjournalMelos
19841989Musicaladvisor,DeutscheOperBerlin
since1985ProfessorforcompositionattheKarlsruheMusicAcademy(successorofProfessorVelte).
MemberoftheadvisorycounciloftheHeinrichStrobelInstitute,SouthWestGermanRadioBadenBaden
1986AwardedtheRolfLiebermannPrizefortheoperaHamletmaschine
1986/87Oedipus,opera,(textbyRihmafterSophokles,Hlderlin,Nietzsche,H.Mller)
1987/91DieEroberungvonMexico(TheConquestofMexico),opera,(AntoninArtaud/Rihm)
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since1989MemberoftheBoardofDirectors,GEMA
1989AwardedGermanDistinguishedServiceCross
199093MusicaladvisortotheCentreforArtandMediaTechnologiesinKarlsruhe(ZKM)
1991GuestspeakerattheopeningceremonyoftheSalzburgFestival.
Member,AcademyoftheArtsinthecitiesofMunich,BerlinandMannheim
1994Sraphin,anattemptatmusictheatre/instruments,voices...WorldpremireinFrankfurt
February:BigRihmPortrait(35works)attheclatFestival,DaysforNewMusic,Stuttgart
1997AwardedthePrixdeCompositionMusicaldelaFondationPrincePierredeMonaco
ComposerinresidenceattheFestivalLucerne
1998AwardedtheJacobBurckhardtPrizeoftheJohannWolfgangvonGoetheFoundation
HonoraryDoctorateofFreieUniversittBerlin
2000AwardedtheBachPrizeoftheCityofHamburg
ComposerinresidenceattheSalzburgFestivalandtheMusicaFestivalinStrasbourg
2001RoyalPhilharmonicSocietyAwardforJagdenundFormen
TheFrenchMinistryofExternalAffairsconfersthetitleof'OfficierdanslOrdredesArtsetdesLettres'onWolfgangRihm.
2001/2002Largescalecelebrationofthecomposers50thbirthdaythroughoutEurope,withseveralfestivalsandconcert
organisationsdevotingseriesofconcertstohisoeuvre.Numerousworldpremires.
2003TheErnstvonSiemensMusicAwardgoestoWolfgangRihm.Thishonourhasbeenformallybestoweduponhimon22
May2003atMunich'sCuvillistheater.
7November:EntryintheGoldenBookofthetownofKarlsruhe
20048May:RecipientoftheMedalofMeritofBadenWrttemberg/Germany
200627October:WorldpremireoftheoperaDasGehege(afterBothoStrauss'playSchlusschor)attheBavarianState
OperainMunich
20092May:WorldpremireofthemonodramaProserpinaatRokokoTheatreSchwetzingen(Germany)
201027July:WorldpremireoftheoperaDionysos(anoperaticfantasiabasedontextsbyFriedrichNietzsche,librettoby
thecomposer)attheSalzburgFestival
201030September:AwardedtheGoldenLionforlifetimeachievementfortheMusicsectorsoftheBiennalediVenezia
201018November:WorldpremireofLichtesSpielforviolinandsmallorchestraattheAveryFisherHallNewYork
2011OrderofMeritoftheFederalRepublicofGermany
201115January:WorldpremireofWillSoundMoreforensembleattheAlteOper,FrankfurtamMain
201103April:WorldpremireofDyadeforviolinanddoublebassattheAveryFisherHallNewYork
201122June:WorldpremireofNhefern1fororchestraattheKKLLuzern
201109July:WorldpremireofEineStrasse,LucileforsopranoandorchestraatKarlsruhe
201119October:WorldpremireofNhefern2fororchestraattheKKLLuzern
201125October:WorldpremireofWillSoundMoreAgainforensemble
201129October:WorldpremireofDerMalertrumtforbaritoneundensemble
2011awardedtheGrandCrossoftheOrderofMeritoftheFederalRepublicofGermany
201229February:WorldpremireofNhefern3fororchestra

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201213June:WorldpremireofNhefern4fororchestra
201220August:WorldpremireofDmmrungsenktesichvonobenforbaritoneandorchestraattheKKLLuzern
2012receivestheorderPourleMriteforSciencesandArts
201310February:WorldpremireofEpilogforstringquintetattheEclatFestivalStuttgart
20135April:OpeningoftheWolfgangRihmForumattheUniversityofMusicinKarlsruhe
201318April:appointedCommandeurdanslordredesArtsetdesLettres
201327April:WorldpremireofStilleFesteforchoirandorchestrainStuttgart
201323June:WorldpremireofATributefororchestra
201320October:WorldpremireofINSCHRIFT2fororchestra
201320Nov:WorldpremireofVerwandlung5fororchestra
2013/2014CapellCompositeurattheSchsischeStaatskapelleDresden
201410May:worldpremireofTransitusattheTeatroallaScala(cond.RiccardoChailly)
20144June:worldpremireofVerwandlung6atthePhilharmonieEssen
20146October:awardedtheGrandCrossoftheOrderofMeritwithStaroftheFederalRepublicofGermany
20146November:awardedtheRobertSchumannPrizeforPoetryandMusic2014
2015receivestheGrawemeyerAwardforMusicComposition
summer2016artisticdirectoroftheLucerneFestivalAcademy
WolfgangRihmlivesinKarlsruheandBerlin.

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