Alexander Keuk (born 13 October 1971) is a German

composer A composer is a person who writes music. The term is especially used to indicate composers of Western classical music, or those who are composers by occupation. Many composers are, or were, also skilled performers of music. Etymology and def ...

and

music journalist Music journalism (or music criticism) is media criticism and reporting about music topics, including popular music, classical music, and traditional music. Journalists began writing about music in the eighteenth century, providing commentary on ...

Life

Born in

Wuppertal Wuppertal (; ) is a city in North Rhine-Westphalia, in western Germany, with a population of 355,000. Wuppertal is the seventh-largest city in North Rhine-Westphalia and List of cities in Germany by population, 17th-largest in Germany. It ...

, Keuk completed an apprenticeship as a retail salesman from 1990 to 1992 after his

Abitur ''Abitur'' (), often shortened colloquially to ''Abi'', is a qualification granted at the end of secondary education in Germany. It is conferred on students who pass their final exams at the end of ISCED 3, usually after twelve or thirteen year ...

. From 1993 to 1999 he studied

musical composition Musical composition can refer to an Originality, original piece or work of music, either Human voice, vocal or Musical instrument, instrumental, the musical form, structure of a musical piece or to the process of creating or writing a new pie ...

with Hans Jürgen Wenzel at the

Hochschule für Musik Carl Maria von Weber The Hochschule für Musik Carl Maria von Weber (or Dresden University of Music Carl Maria von Weber; also/formerly known as Dresden Conservatory or Dresden Royal Conservatory) is a university school of music, university of music in Dresden, ...

. He graduated with a thesis on ''The 7 Sonatas for 2 Violins'' by

Allan Pettersson Gustaf Allan Pettersson (19 September 1911 – 20 June 1980) was a Swedish composer and violist. He is considered one of the 20th century's most important Swedish composers and was described as one of the last great symphonists, ...

, followed by a

postgraduate education Postgraduate education, graduate education, or graduate school consists of Academic degree, academic or professional degrees, certificates, diplomas, or other qualifications usually pursued by higher education, post-secondary students who have ...

. (among others with Wilfried Krätzschmar) in composition, which he completed in 2001 with a Konzertexamen. Starting during his studies, Keuk has been working as a freelance author for the cultural editorial department of ''

Dresdner Neueste Nachrichten Dresdner Neueste Nachrichten (DNN) is a regional newspaper that appears in the city of Dresden and its surroundings. It is the third largest newspaper in the region after the '' Sächsische Zeitung'' and the ''Dresdner Morgenpost''. The sold circu ...

'' since 1996. Since 2002 he has been working in Dresden as a freelance composer and music journalist. He regularly writes articles for the '' Neue Musikzeitung'', the ''

Neue Zeitschrift für Musik The New Journal of Music (, and abbreviated to NZM) is a music magazine, co-founded in Leipzig by Robert Schumann, his teacher and future father-in law Friedrich Wieck, Julius Knorr and his close friend Ludwig Schuncke. Its first issue appe ...

'' and the specialist magazine '. From 2001 to 2003 Keuk was the managing director of the ''Saxon Society for New Music''. Since 1992 he has been on the board of the ''International Allan Pettersson Society'' and was chairman of the Dresdner Kammerchor until 2018. In 1999 he was a scholarship holder of the ''Sächsische Kulturstiftung'' and the in

Künstlerhaus Schloss Wiepersdorf Schloss Wiepersdorf is a ''Schloss'' in Niederer Fläming, Brandenburg Brandenburg, officially the State of Brandenburg, is a States of Germany, state in northeastern Germany. Brandenburg borders Poland and the states of Berlin, Mecklenburg ...

. Three times he received a working scholarship from Freistaat Sachsen. In cooperation with the

Deutsche Oper Berlin The Deutsche Oper Berlin is a German opera company located in the Charlottenburg district of Berlin. The resident building is the country's second largest opera house (after Munich's) and also home to the Berlin State Ballet. Since 2004, the ...

, the and the a music theatre for children was created in 2003. For several years Keuk also worked with pupils on composition projects at Dresden schools. On the occasion of Dresden's 800th anniversary, Keuk was commissioned by the city of Dresden and the

Dresden Philharmonic The Dresdner Philharmonie (Dresden Philharmonic) is a German symphony orchestra based in Dresden. Its principal concert venue is the '' Kulturpalast''. The orchestra also performs at the Kreuzkirche and the Frauenkirche Dresden. It receive ...

to compose the orchestral work ''Mehr Licht!'', which was premiered in May 2006 in a cycle concert of the orchestra.

Compositions

Stage music

* ''DR. OX V5.1'', Children opera for 7 singers and ensemble after a text by

Jules Verne Jules Gabriel Verne (;''Longman Pronunciation Dictionary''. ; 8 February 1828 – 24 March 1905) was a French novelist, poet and playwright. His collaboration with the publisher Pierre-Jules Hetzel led to the creation of the ''Voyages extraor ...

libretto A libretto (From the Italian word , ) is the text used in, or intended for, an extended musical work such as an opera, operetta, masque, oratorio, cantata or Musical theatre, musical. The term ''libretto'' is also sometimes used to refer to th ...

by Wolfgang Willaschek, 2000–2003, 1 October 2003, Schlosstheater Dresden

Orchestra and music ensemble

* ''Gebet'' for speaker and orchestra after a text by

Georg Heym Georg Theodor Franz Artur Heym (30 October 1887 – 16 January 1912) was a German writer. He is particularly known for his poetry, representative of early Expressionism. Biography Heym was born in Hirschberg, Lower Silesia, in 1887 to H ...

, 1992/93, 16 April 1993, Theater Halberstadt * ''Ein deutsches Kettenrondomassaker'' for

chamber orchestra Chamber music is a form of classical music that is composed for a small group of Musical instrument, instruments—traditionally a group that could fit in a Great chamber, palace chamber or a large room. Most broadly, it includes any art music ...

, 1994/95,5 October 1996, Hochschule für Musik Dresden, cond.

Christian Münch Christian Münch (born 11 April 1951) is a German composer, organist, pianist and conductor. Life Münch was born in Freiberg in 1951 in a cantor's family. With his father he learned trumpet and organ. Since his childhood he received piano and ...

* ''Marche Funèbre de la Pensée – Bruchstücke vom Schauen und Hören'' for 11 brass instruments and percussion, 1997, premiered 6 May 1998, Hochschule für Musik Dresden * ''Ultimatum'' for large orchestra, 1998, premiere 13 May 2001,

Semperoper The Semperoper () is the opera house of the Sächsische Staatsoper Dresden (Saxon State Opera) and the concert hall of the Staatskapelle Dresden (Saxon State Orchestra). It is also home to the Semperoper Ballett. The building is located on the Th ...

Dresden * ''Kläng'' for orchestra, 2000/01, premiere 20 April 2001, Lukaskirche Dresden, * ''Da fragte ich mich/was für eine Kälte/muss über die Leute gekommen sein'' for chamber ensemble, 2000, 1 December 2000, Dresden * ''Luc and Teo having some drinks at the Flamingo Bar'' for orchestra, 2005, premiere: 29 October 2005,

Friedrichshafen Friedrichshafen ( or ; Low Alemannic: ''Hafe'' or ''Fridrichshafe'') is a city on the northern shoreline of Lake Constance (the ''Bodensee'') in Southern Germany, near the borders of both Switzerland and Austria. It is the district capital (''K ...

* ''Mehr Licht!'' for large orchestra, 2005/06, 20 May 2006,

, cond. Peter Gülke * ''TIME BLAST'' for clarinet, horn and cello solo and large orchestra, 2012, premiere: 2 November 2012, Landesjugendorchester Sachsen, cond. Milko Kersten * ''Doppelkonzert für 2 Violinen und Orchester'', 2012/13, 21 March 2013, Freiberg,

Duo Gelland Duo Gelland is a Swedish-German violin duo on the international classical scene. The members are Cecilia and Martin Gelland. The duo was founded in 1994. Life Their early recordings of Cantus gemellus by Dieter Acker and the fiercely demanding ...

(violin), Mittelsächsische Philharmonie, cond. Jan Michael Horstmann

Vocal musik

* ''Den Wolken II – marana sati'' for soprano, mezzo-soprano and harpsichord after a text von Georg Heym, 1994, 27 April 1994, Hochschule für Musik Dresden * ''Musik für die Performance "Kompluxus"'' for choir and instruments, 1995/96, 23 June 1995,

Hochschule für Bildende Künste Dresden The Dresden Academy of Fine Arts (German ''Hochschule für Bildende Künste Dresden''), often abbreviated HfBK Dresden or simply HfBK, is a vocational university of visual arts located in Dresden, Germany. The present institution is the product ...

* ''Die Blinden'' for tenor and piano after a text by Georg Heym, 1993/97, 17 December 1997, Hochschule für Musik Dresden * ''(Warum Puschkin)'' cycle in 6 songs for soprano, baritone and piano after texts by Alexander Puschkin, 1999, 24 November 1999,

Humboldt-Universität Berlin The Humboldt University of Berlin (, abbreviated HU Berlin) is a public research university in the central borough of Mitte in Berlin, Germany. The university was established by Frederick William III on the initiative of Wilhelm von Humboldt, ...

* ''Monolog des verrückten Mastodons'' for women's choir after a text by

Paul Scheerbart Paul Karl Wilhelm Scheerbart (8 January 1863, Danzig – 15 October 1915, Berlin) was a German author of speculative fiction literature and drawings. He was also published under the pseudonym ''Kuno Küfer'' and is best known for the book ' ...

, 2002, UA on the occasion of the German Choir competition 6 May 2002, * Psalm-Motette ''Erforsche mich Gott'' for eight-part mixed choir after

Psalm 139 Psalm 139 is the 139th psalm of the Book of Psalms, beginning in English in the King James Version: "O Lord, thou hast searched me, and known me". In Latin, it is known as . The psalm is a hymn psalm. Attributed to David, it is known for its af ...

, 2004, 6 March 2005, Evangelische Kirche Wilthen * ''morgen.metamorphosen'' for three vocal parts, text by Sabine Bergk, 2007/08, 31 March 2008 * ''Vineta-Exerzitien'' for mixed choir, 17 January 2009, Hochschule für Musik Dresden, Dresdner Kammerchor, conduct.

Hans-Christoph Rademann Hans-Christoph Rademann (born 5 August 1965 in Dresden) is a German choral conductor, currently the director of the Dresdner Kammerchor and the Internationale Bachakademie Stuttgart. Career Born in Dresden, Rademann grew up in Schwarzenberg ...

* ''Ein Tropfen, ein Schluck in der Höhe'' (text ) for alto, tenor, choir and orchestra, 8 December 2013, Dresden, Singakademie Dresden, conduct. Ekkehard Klemm * ''Damyata'' for 3 choirs ''

a cappella Music performed a cappella ( , , ; ), less commonly spelled acapella in English, is music performed by a singer or a singing group without instrumental accompaniment. The term ''a cappella'' was originally intended to differentiate between Rena ...

'', 9 May 2014, Dresden, Taipeh Male Choir, Dresdner Kammerchor, Chor des Vitzthum-Gymnasiums Dresden, cond. Olaf Katzer

Chamber music

* ''Soliloquy'' für Querflöte Solo, 1992, UA 30 Mai 1992, Blankenburg * ''Licht-Blicke'', Novellen für 3 Querflöten, 1993, 28 January 1995 Zentrum für Zeitgenössische Musik Dresden * ''Als wenn die Welt aus Lego wär'', Orgelmusik in einem Satz, 1994, 31 August 1994 Dominikanerkirche

Münster Münster (; ) is an independent city#Germany, independent city (''Kreisfreie Stadt'') in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is in the northern part of the state and is considered to be the cultural centre of the Westphalia region. It is also a ...

, Philipp Maintz (organ) * ''Distraire'' für Violine Solo, 1994/96, 11 December 1996, Dresden * ''...Nicht auslöschen...Ströme...nicht ertränken...'', Sonata for viola and trombone, 1997, 22 June 1998

Teplice Teplice (, until 1948 Teplice-Šanov; , ''Teplitz-Schönau'') is a city in the Ústí nad Labem Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 51,000 inhabitants. It is the most populous Czech spa town, followed by Karlovy Vary. The historic city cen ...

* ''Flash'' for clarinet solo, 1998, premiere 24 November 1999 Hochschule für Musik Dresden, published as ''Composition'' in ''Entweder/Oder'' Nr. 75, ed. by * ''Klaviertrio'', 1999, 17 May 2002 Leipzig * ''Bagatelle'' for 2 violins, 2003, 28 May 2003,

Dreikönigskirche, Dresden The Dreikönigskirche (Three Kings' Church) is a Lutheran church located in the Innere Neustadt (Dresden), Innere Neustadt of Dresden, Germany. It is the centre of a parish, and a community venue called Haus der Kirche. The church is a . A church ...

, Duo Gelland * ''Refrain'' for Cello, Conveyor belt and record player, 2007, 14 November 2007, Hochschule für Musik Dresden, Matthias Lorenz (cello) * ''Die sieben letzten Worte'' for organ, 2008, 31 March 2008, Herz-Jesu-Kirche München * ''DATTA'' for viola Solo, 2012, 2013, Munich,

Nils Mönkemeyer Nils Mönkemeyer (born 1978) is a German violist and academic teacher. He has recorded several CDs, of viola literature and arrangements for the viola, making it a respected solo instrument. He has been awarded several international prizes. Car ...

(Bratsche)

Electronic Music

* ''Bläue'', Vierkanal-Bandstück, 1997, 28 October 1997

Lüneburg Lüneburg, officially the Hanseatic City of Lüneburg and also known in English as Lunenburg, is a town in the German Bundesland (Germany), state of Lower Saxony. It is located about southeast of another Hanseatic League, Hanseatic city, Hambur ...

References

External links

*
Official HomepageAlexander Keuk
in the Archive of contemporary composers of the

Saxon State and University Library Dresden The Saxon State and University Library Dresden (full name in ), abbreviated SLUB Dresden, is located in Dresden, Germany. It is both the regional library () for the Federal Republic of Germany, German State of Saxony as well as the academic libr ...

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Keuk, Alexander 20th-century German composers 21st-century German composers German music journalists 20th-century German journalists 1971 births Living people Musicians from Wuppertal