British composer Brian Ferneyhough, leading figure of 'new complexity' whose highly intellectual and complex music is regarded by many as unplayable, has been awarded the prestigious international Ernst von Siemens music prize this year, the Ernst von Siemens Foundation announced. "He has greatly expanded the potential range of instrumental performance and musical notation. His string quartets are among the most difficult in the genre."
Vykintas Baltakas |
The Ernst von Siemens foundation also awarded a further 1.8 million euros in other prize monies this year, with the two composers' prizes going to Vykintas Baltakas of Lithuania and Markus Hechtle of Germany.
Vykintas Baltakas (b. 1972 in Vinius) from 1990 to 1993 he studied at the local Academy of Music, where he teachers included Vytautas Barkauskas (composition) and Lionginas Abarius (conducting). He then traveled to Germany to perfect his studies with Wolfgang Rihm, Peter Eötvös, and finally Emanuel Nunes in Paris. He drew international attention above all with his first opera, Cantio, which was performed with great acclaim at the Munich Biennale in 2004. Since studying with Peter Eötvös and serving as his assistant, Baltakas has become increasingly active as a conductor and has stood at the helm of many contemporary music ensembles. A polyglot European who commutes between Germany, France, Belgium, and Lithuania, he is now considered one of the leading composers of his generation.
Baltakas's music is typified by his precise research and subsequent deliberate manipulation of his material. He refuses to bow to stylistic conventions and writes solely to satisfy his own musical criteria. Theatrical elements have found their way into his relatively slender oeuvre along with moments of wit and sly humor. Yet every work by this highly self-critical composer is extremely tightly structured.
Siemens Music Prize has been awarded since 1973, among the prizewinners are Benjamin Britten, Herbert von Karajan, Karlheinz Stockhausen, Peter Schreier, Nikolaus Harnoncourt. Last year, the Siemens Music Prize, one of the most coveted in the musical world, was awarded to Argentinian-Israeli pianist and conductor Daniel Barenboim.
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