Jörg Widmann (born 19 June 1973) is a German composer, conductor and clarinetist. In 2018, Widmann was the third most performed contemporary composer in the world. Formerly a clarinet and composition professor at the University of Music Freiburg, he is composition professor at the Barenboim–Said Akademie. His most important compositions are the two operas '' Babylon'' and '' Das Gesicht im Spiegel'', an oratorio ''

Arche ''Arche'' (; grc, ἀρχή; sometimes also transcribed as ''arkhé'') is a Greek word with primary senses "beginning", "origin" or "source of action" (: from the beginning, οr : the original argument), and later "first principle" or "element". ...

'', his string quartets and the concert overture '' Con brio''. Widmann wrote musical tributes to Classical and Romantic composers. He was awarded the

Bavarian Maximilian Order for Science and Art The Bavarian Maximilian Order for Science and Art (german: Bayerischer Maximiliansorden für Wissenschaft und Kunst, links=no) was first established on 28 November 1853 by King Maximilian II von Bayern. It is awarded to acknowledge and reward exc ...

in 2018.

Education and career

Widmann was born on 19 June 1973 in

Munich Munich ( ; german: München ; bar, Minga ) is the capital and most populous city of the German state of Bavaria. With a population of 1,558,395 inhabitants as of 31 July 2020, it is the third-largest city in Germany, after Berlin and Ha ...

, the son of a physicist and a teacher. He first took clarinet lessons in 1980. Four years later he became a composition student of Kay Westermann. Widmann attended the secondary school in Munich. He later studied composition with Hans Werner Henze,

Wilfried Hiller Wilfried Hiller (born 15 March 1941) is a German composer. He became known above all for his stage works for families, children and young people. Life and work Hiller was born the son of the teacher August Hiller and his wife Josepha Hiller, n� ...

Heiner Goebbels Heiner Goebbels (born 17 August 1952) is a German composer, conductor and professor at Justus-Liebig-University in Gießen and artistic director of the International Festival of the Arts Ruhrtriennale 2012–14. His composition ''Stifters Dinge' ...

and

Wolfgang Rihm Wolfgang Rihm (born 13 March 1952) is a German composer and academic teacher. He is musical director of the Institute of New Music and Media at the University of Music Karlsruhe and has been composer in residence at the Lucerne Festival and the ...

. He studied as a clarinetist at the

Hochschule für Musik und Theater München The University of Music and Performing Arts Munich (german: Hochschule für Musik und Theater München), also known as the Munich Conservatory, is a performing arts conservatory in Munich, Germany. The main building it currently occupies is ...

with Gerhard Starke (1986–1997, Meisterklassendiplom 1997) and at the

Juilliard School The Juilliard School ( ) is a private performing arts conservatory in New York City. Established in 1905, the school trains about 850 undergraduate and graduate students in dance, drama, and music. It is widely regarded as one of the most ...

in New York City with Charles Neidich (1994–1995, Advanced Certificate 1995). After graduating with a Master's from Hochschule für Musik Munich in 1997, he furthered his studies at the

Hochschule für Musik Karlsruhe Karlsruhe's University of Music (Hochschule für Musik Karlsruhe in German) is a college of music in Karlsruhe, Germany. Originally the Baden Conservatory of Music, it was elevated to a Hochschule under the direction of Franz Philipp, who led th ...

(1997–1999). From 2001 to 2015, he taught clarinet as a professor at the University of Music Freiburg. From 2009 to 2016 Widmann was a part-time Professor of Composition, succeeding Mathias Spahlinger, at the Institute for New Music at the University of Music Freiburg. From 2011 to 2017, Widmann was Principal Guest Conductor and from 2017 to 2022, Principal Conductor and Artistic Partner of the

Irish Chamber Orchestra The Irish Chamber Orchestra (ICO) is an Irish classical music ensemble, administratively based at the University of Limerick. János Fürst founded the ICO in 1963. The ICO consisted only of strings as its regular ensemble for many years, adding w ...

. Since 2017, Widmann has held the Edward-Said-Chair as Professor of Composition at the Barenboim–Said Akademie, Berlin. Since 2022, he has been Associated Conductor of the

Munich Chamber Orchestra The Munich Chamber Orchestra (german: Münchener Kammerorchester, links=no, italic=no, or MKO) is a German chamber orchestra based in Munich. Its primary concert venue is the Prinzregententheater, Munich. The MKO also gives concerts in Munich at ...

. He lives in Berlin and Munich.

Musical works and performances

Widmann has achieved success both as a clarinetist and as a composer.

Clarinet career

As a soloist, Widmann has performed with major orchestras in Germany and abroad, including the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra and Munich Philharmonic Orchestra, under conductors like

Valery Gergiev Valery Abisalovich Gergiev (russian: Вале́рий Абиса́лович Ге́ргиев, ; os, Гергиты Абисалы фырт Валери, Gergity Abisaly fyrt Valeri; born 2 May 1953) is a Russian conductor and opera company di ...

Christoph von Dohnányi Christoph von Dohnányi (; born 8 September 1929) is a German conductor. Biography Youth and World War II Dohnányi was born in Berlin, Germany to Hans von Dohnanyi, a German jurist of Hungarian ancestry, and Christine Bonhoeffer. His uncle ...

, Sylvain Cambreling and

Kent Nagano Kent George Nagano GOQ, MSM (born November 22, 1951) is an American conductor and opera administrator. Since 2015, he has been Music Director of the Hamburg State Opera and was Music Director of the Montreal Symphony Orchestra from 2006 to 202 ...

. He has premiered several clarinet concerti dedicated to him: in 1999 through "musica viva", he played ''Music for Clarinet and Orchestra'' by Wolfgang Rihm; in 2006 with the

WDR Symphony Orchestra The WDR Symphony Orchestra Cologne (German: WDR Sinfonieorchester Köln) is a German radio orchestra based in Cologne, where the orchestra mainly performs at two concert halls: the WDR Funkhaus Wallrafplatz and the Kölner Philharmonie. Histor ...

, ''Cantus'' by

Aribert Reimann Aribert Reimann (born 4 March 1936) is a German composer, pianist and accompanist, known especially for his literary operas. His version of Shakespeare's ''King Lear'', the opera ''Lear'', was written at the suggestion of Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau ...

; and in 2015 "''über''" by

Mark Andre Mark Andre (born 10 May 1964) is a French composer living in Germany. He was known as "Marc André," his birth name, until 2007, when he formally revised the spelling. He lives in Berlin. Andre's compositions ''durch'' (2006), ''...auf... III'' (2 ...

at the

Donaueschingen Festival The Donaueschingen Festival (german: Donaueschinger Musiktage, links=no) is a festival for new music that takes place every October in the small town of Donaueschingen in south-western Germany. Founded in 1921, it is considered the oldest festiva ...

. Widmann's core repertoire as clarinetist includes

Pierre Boulez Pierre Louis Joseph Boulez (; 26 March 1925 – 5 January 2016) was a French composer, conductor and writer, and the founder of several musical institutions. He was one of the dominant figures of post-war Western classical music. Born in Mon ...

's '' Dialogue de l'ombre double'', which he performed on Boulez's 85th birthday in Paris.

Career as composer

Widmann's compositions draw on different musical genres. For example, he has written a trilogy for orchestra examining the projection of vocal forms of instrumental ensembles. The trilogy consists of ''Lied'' (premiered in 2003 and recorded on CD by the Bamberg Symphony with

Jonathan Nott Jonathan Nott (born 25 December 1962, in Solihull, England) is an English conductor. Biography The son of a priest at Worcester Cathedral, Nott was a music student and choral scholar at St John's College, Cambridge, and also studied singing an ...

), ''Chor'' (premiered in 2004 by the Deutsches Symphonie-Orchester Berlin with Kent Nagano) and ''Messe'' (premiered in June 2005 by the Munich Philharmonic under Christian Thielemann). In 2007, Pierre Boulez and the Vienna Philharmonic premiered his orchestral work ''Armonica''. His early string quartets are of particular note among his

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

: the First Quartet was written in 1997, followed by the ''Chorale Quartet'' and the ''Hunting Quartet'', the latter premiered in 2003 by the

Arditti Quartet The Arditti Quartet is a string quartet founded in 1974 and led by the British violinist Irvine Arditti. The quartet is a globally recognized promoter of contemporary classical music and has a reputation for having a very wide repertoire. T ...

. 2005 saw the first performances of the Fourth Quartet and ''Experiment on a Fugue'' (Fifth Quartet, with soprano), with

Juliane Banse Juliane Banse (born 10 July 1969 in Tettnang, Germany) is a German opera soprano and noted singer. Banse received her vocal training at the Zürich Opera, and with Brigitte Fassbaender in Munich. She won first prize in the singing competition ...

and the Artemis Quartet. These five one-movement quartets form a cycle. Widmann was Composer in Residence at the

Salzburg Festival The Salzburg Festival (german: Salzburger Festspiele) is a prominent festival of music and drama established in 1920. It is held each summer (for five weeks starting in late July) in the Austrian town of Salzburg, the birthplace of Wolfgang Ama ...

and at the chamber music festival

Spannungen Spannungen ("Tensions" or "Voltages") is an annual summer festival for chamber music in Heimbach, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany, founded by pianist Lars Vogt in 1998. It is subtitled Musik im Kraftwerk Heimbach (Music in the Heimbach power pla ...

, Heimbach in 2004. Octet was premiered on 4 June 2004 at the power plant

Kraftwerk Heimbach Kraftwerk Heimbach is a hydro-electric power station in Heimbach, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It was built in Jugendstil architecture, completed in 1905, then the largest hydro-electric power station in Europe. It is also known as Urftkra ...

. Widmann premiered ''Am Anfang'' by

Anselm Kiefer Anselm Kiefer (born 8 March 1945) is a German painter and sculptor. He studied with Peter Dreher and Horst Antes at the end of the 1960s. His works incorporate materials such as straw, ash, clay, lead, and shellac. The poems of Paul Celan h ...

in July 2009 as part of the 20th anniversary of the Opéra Bastille, in which he acted as composer, clarinetist and made his debut as conductor. He was Composer in Residence at the Lucerne Festival in 2009, where on 13 August 2009, Heinz Holliger performed Widmann's oboe concerto, commissioned by the festival. On 5 September Widmann premiered Holliger's ''Rechant'' for solo clarinet. Widmann's ''Free Pieces for Ensemble: Number X'' is used in Sophie Fiennes's documentary '' Over Your Cities Grass Will Grow'' (2010), about the postwar German artist Anselm Kiefer. His sister

Carolin Widmann Carolin Widmann (born 1976) is a German classical violinist. The sister of composer and clarinetist Jörg Widmann, she focuses mainly on contemporary music. She plays a violin made in 1782 by Giovanni Battista Guadagnini. Career Born in Munic ...

premiered his ''études IV-VI'' for violin (20042010) at the Wittener Tage für neue Kammermusik on 23 April 2010. From 2009 to 2011 he was the Daniel R. Lewis Young Composer Fellow at the

Cleveland Orchestra The Cleveland Orchestra, based in Cleveland, is one of the five American orchestras informally referred to as the " Big Five". Founded in 1918 by the pianist and impresario Adella Prentiss Hughes, the orchestra plays most of its concerts at Seve ...

. He performed his '' Fantasie for Solo Clarinet'' (1993) to celebrate

Walter Fink Walter Fink (16 August 1930 – 13 April 2018) was a German entrepreneur and a patron of contemporary classical music. He is known for being a founding member, executive committee member and sponsor of the Rheingau Musik Festival, where he initi ...

's 80th birthday at the Rheingau Musik Festival on 16 August 2010 and in 2014 was the festival's Composer and Artist in Residence. Widmann was the Tonhalle Orchester Zürich's Creative Chair in the 2015–16 season. On 9 September 2015, the

Boston Symphony Orchestra The Boston Symphony Orchestra (BSO) is an American orchestra based in Boston, Massachusetts. It is the second-oldest of the five major American symphony orchestras commonly referred to as the " Big Five". Founded by Henry Lee Higginson in 1 ...

and the

Leipzig Gewandhaus Orchestra The Leipzig Gewandhaus Orchestra (Gewandhausorchester; also previously known in German as the Gewandhausorchester Leipzig) is a German symphony orchestra based in Leipzig, Germany. The orchestra is named after the concert hall in which it is bas ...

announced they were commissioning a work from Widmann as part of a planned collaboration by the two organizations beginning in the fall of 2017. The Leipzig Gewandhaus Orchestra announced Widmann's appointment as its first-ever ''Gewandhauskomponist'' (Gewandhaus composer) for the 2017–18 season. Widmann's oratorio ''

ARCHE ''Arche'' (; grc, ἀρχή; sometimes also transcribed as ''arkhé'') is a Greek word with primary senses "beginning", "origin" or "source of action" (: from the beginning, οr : the original argument), and later "first principle" or "element". ...

'' had its world premiere on 13 January 2017 on the occasion of the opening festivities of the

Elbphilharmonie The Elbphilharmonie (; "Elbe Philharmonic Hall"), popularly nicknamed Elphi, is a concert hall in the HafenCity quarter of Hamburg, Germany, on the Grasbrook peninsula of the Elbe River. It is among the largest in the world. The new glassy con ...

in Hamburg. The Hamburg Philharmonic State Orchestra conducted by Kent Nagano performed it. A concert by Widmann,

Daniel Barenboim Daniel Barenboim (; in he, דניאל בארנבוים, born 15 November 1942) is an Argentine-born classical pianist and conductor based in Berlin. He has been since 1992 General Music Director of the Berlin State Opera and "Staatskapellmeist ...

, and Anna Prohaska opened the

Pierre Boulez Saal Pierre is a masculine given name. It is a French form of the name Peter. Pierre originally meant "rock" or "stone" in French (derived from the Greek word πέτρος (''petros'') meaning "stone, rock", via Latin "petra"). It is a translation ...

on 4 March 2017. HagenQuartet

On 27 January 2018 Widmann and the Hagen Quartet performed his Clarinet Quintet, as part of a European tour, at Amsterdam's

Muziekgebouw aan het IJ Muziekgebouw aan 't IJ ( English: "Music Building on the IJ") is the main concert hall for contemporary classical music on the IJ in Amsterdam, Netherlands. The building opened in 2005 and is located above the IJtunnel, a ten-minute walk from ...

Partita Partita (also ''partie'', ''partia'', ''parthia'', or ''parthie'') was originally the name for a single-instrumental piece of music (16th and 17th centuries), but Johann Kuhnau (Thomaskantor until 1722), his student Christoph Graupner, and Johann ...

, five reminiscences for large orchestra, commissioned by the Leipzig Gewandhaus Orchestra and the Boston Symphony Orchestra, was premiered in Leipzig on 8 March 2018 with Andris Nelsons conducting. After the world premiere in 2012 at the

Bavarian State Opera The Bayerische Staatsoper is a German opera company based in Munich. Its main venue is the Nationaltheater München, and its orchestra the Bayerische Staatsorchester. History The parent ensemble of the company was founded in 1653, under Ele ...

, in 2019 a new Berlin version of his opera ''Babylon'' was performed at the

Berlin State Opera The (), also known as the Berlin State Opera (german: Staatsoper Berlin), is a listed building on Unter den Linden boulevard in the historic center of Berlin, Germany. The opera house was built by order of Prussian king Frederick the Great from ...

Unter den Linden Unter den Linden (, "under the Tilia, linden trees") is a boulevard in the central Mitte (locality), Mitte district of Berlin, the capital of Germany. Running from the City Palace, Berlin, City Palace to Brandenburg Gate, it is named after the l ...

under the musical direction of

Christopher Ward Christopher Ward may refer to: * Christopher Ward (British politician) (born 1942), British solicitor and Conservative Party politician * Christopher Ward (conductor) (born 1980), British conductor * Christopher Ward (entomologist) (1836–1900), ...

Anne-Sophie Mutter Anne-Sophie Mutter (born 29 June 1963) is a German violinist. She was supported early in her career by Herbert von Karajan. As an advocate of contemporary music, she has had several works composed especially for her, by Sebastian Currier, Hen ...

is the dedicatee of String Quartet No. 6 (''Study on Beethoven'', 2019). With this piece, Widmann began a new series of works in the genre. Widmann held the 2019–20 Richard and Barbara Debs Composer's Chair at Carnegie Hall. During the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identified ...

of 2020, he contributed to the online Festival of New Music with his composition ''empty space''. Barenboim and

Emanuel Pahud Emmanuel Pahud (born 27 January 1970) is a Franco-Swiss flautist. He was born in Geneva, Switzerland. His father is of French and Swiss background and his mother is French. The Berlin-based flutistPatrick LamEmmanuel Pahud – The showcase behi ...

curated the festival in the empty Pierre Boulez Saal.

Musical style

Sounds, not tones, are the focus of Widmann's thinking. His music integrates

serialism In music, serialism is a method of composition using series of pitches, rhythms, dynamics, timbres or other musical elements. Serialism began primarily with Arnold Schoenberg's twelve-tone technique, though some of his contemporaries were also ...

and noise in traditional sources. In most of his compositions, Widmann is in a musical "dialogue" with Classical-Romantic composers such as Schumann, Mozart, Beethoven, Schubert and Brahms. He wrote musical tributes to these composers. Widmann has written pieces without pitches and also purely tonal pieces with exaggerated familiar gestures. The scores show extremely precise, well-considered structures and instructions. He uses extended techniques in many compositions, such as ''Con brio''. He finds inspiration in literature, poems, paintings and sculptures and frequently uses literary sources for his compositions, like

Matthias Claudius Matthias Claudius (15 August 1740 – 21 January 1815) was a German poet and journalist, otherwise known by the pen name of “Asmus”. Life Claudius was born at Reinfeld, near Lübeck, and studied at Jena. He spent the greater part of his li ...

, Klabund,

Heinrich Heine Christian Johann Heinrich Heine (; born Harry Heine; 13 December 1797 – 17 February 1856) was a German poet, writer and literary critic. He is best known outside Germany for his early lyric poetry, which was set to music in the form of '' Lie ...

, Peter Sloterdijk, Clemens Brentano and

Friedrich Schiller Johann Christoph Friedrich von Schiller (, short: ; 10 November 17599 May 1805) was a German playwright, poet, and philosopher. During the last seventeen years of his life (1788–1805), Schiller developed a productive, if complicated, friends ...

. According to ''

Bachtrack ''Bachtrack'' is a London-based international online music magazine which publishes listings of classical music, opera, ballet and dance, as well as reviews of these genres, interviews and general feature articles. History Bachtrack Ltd was r ...

'', Widmann was the third most performed contemporary composer in the world in 2018, behind

Arvo Pärt Arvo Pärt (; born 11 September 1935) is an Estonian composer of contemporary classical music. Since the late 1970s, Pärt has worked in a minimalist style that employs tintinnabuli, a compositional technique he invented. Pärt's music is in par ...

and

John Williams John Towner Williams (born February 8, 1932)Nylund, Rob (15 November 2022)Classic Connection review '' WBOI'' ("For the second time this year, the Fort Wayne Philharmonic honored American composer, conductor, and arranger John Williams, who w ...

Awards

* 1996 * 1997 Bayerischer Staatspreis für junge Künstler * 1999

Belmont Prize The Belmont Prize is a music award named after the place of destiny in Shakespeare's ''The Merchant of Venice''. The Munich-based Forberg Schneider Foundation, founded in 1997, promotes outstanding achievements in the field of contemporary music. T ...

for Contemporary Music from the Forberg-Schneider Foundation * 2002 Hindemith Prize of the

Schleswig-Holstein Musik Festival The Schleswig-Holstein Musik Festival is a classical music festival held each summer throughout the state of Schleswig-Holstein in Northern Germany. History The festival was founded in 1986 by German concert pianist Justus Frantz. In 2006, the 21 ...

* 2002 Schneider-Schott Music Prize * 2003 Ernst von Siemens Composers' Prize * 2003–2004 award of the magazine ''

Opernwelt ''Opernwelt'' (''Opera World'') is a monthly German magazine for opera, operetta and ballet. It includes news about current performances, portraits of composers and performers, articles about opera house An opera house is a theater (structure) ...

'': "most important premiere of the season: ''Das Gesicht im Spiegel''" * 2004 Arnold Schönberg Prize * 2006 Kompositionspreis of the SWR Sinfonieorchester Baden-Baden und Freiburg for ''Second Labyrinth'' * 2006 Claudio-Abbado-Kompositionspreis of the Orchester-Akademie of the

Berlin Philharmonic The Berlin Philharmonic (german: Berliner Philharmoniker, links=no, italic=no) is a German orchestra based in Berlin. It is one of the most popular, acclaimed and well-respected orchestras in the world. History The Berlin Philharmonic was fo ...

for Quintet for oboe, clarinet, horn, bassoon and piano * 2007 Prize of the Christoph and Stephan Kaske Foundation * 2009 Stoeger Prize of the New York Chamber Music Society * 2010 Marsilius Medal of the

Heidelberg University } Heidelberg University, officially the Ruprecht Karl University of Heidelberg, (german: Ruprecht-Karls-Universität Heidelberg; la, Universitas Ruperto Carola Heidelbergensis) is a public research university in Heidelberg, Baden-Württemberg, ...

* 2013 Heidelberger Frühling Music Award * 2013 German Music Authors' Prize (Composition Symphonic) * 2018

Robert Schumann Prize for Poetry and Music The Robert Schumann Prize for Poetry and Music (german: Robert Schumann-Preis für Dichtung und Musik) Mainz is a classical music prize named after Robert Schumann, awarded biennially since 2012. The prize money is €15,000 (2012–2016: €25,00 ...

Mainz * 2018

* 2019 , "Composer of the year" for ''ARCHE'' * 2021

Musikpreis der Landeshauptstadt München The Musikpreis der Landeshauptstadt München (Music Prize of the City of Munich) is an award, awarded since 1992, initially every two years but since 2000, every three years, alternating with the Theaterpreis and the Tanzpreis. The music prize re ...

* 2021 Würth Prize of Jeunesses Musicales Germany

Memberships

* 2003 Fellow of the Berlin Institute for Advanced Study * 2005 Member of the Bayerische Akademie der Schönen Künste * 2007 Member of the Freie Akademie der Künste Hamburg * 2007 Member of the

Deutsche Akademie der Darstellenden Künste The Deutsche Akademie der Darstellenden Künste (German Academy of the Performing Arts) is an academy founded in Hamburg in 1956, representing members from theatre, film, television and radio. Their activities and events are supported by foundations ...

* 2016 Member of the

Akademie der Wissenschaften und der Literatur The Academy of Sciences and Literature (german: Akademie der Wissenschaften und der Literatur Mainz, AdW Mainz) is a scientific academy in Mainz, Germany. It was established in 1949 on an initiative of Alfred Döblin. The academy's goal is to s ...

Mainz

Works

Widmann's works are published by

Schott Music Schott Music () is one of the oldest German music publishers. It is also one of the largest music publishing houses in Europe, and is the second oldest music publisher after Breitkopf & Härtel. The company headquarters of Schott Music were fou ...

. * ''Absences'',

Schuloper This is a glossary list of opera genres, giving alternative names. " Opera" is an Italian word (short for "opera in musica"); it was not at first ''commonly'' used in Italy (or in other countries) to refer to the genre of particular works. Most ...

(1990) * ''Kreisleriana'', concert piece for violin and chamber orchestra (1993) * '' Fantasie for Solo Clarinet'' (1993) * First

String Quartet The term string quartet can refer to either a type of musical composition or a group of four people who play them. Many composers from the mid-18th century onwards wrote string quartets. The associated musical ensemble consists of two violinist ...

(1997) * ''Five Fragments'' for clarinet and piano (1997) * ''Nachtstück'' (''Nightpiece'') for piano, clarinet and cello (1998) * ''Fever Fantasy'' for piano, string quartet and clarinet (with bass clarinet) (1999) * ''Implosion'' for orchestra (2001) * ''Light Study I'' for orchestra (2001) * ''ad absurdum'' for trumpet and small orchestra (2002) * ''Free Pieces'' for ensemble (2002) * ''Toccata'' for piano (2002) * Second String Quartet (''Chorale Quartet'') (2003) * ''Hall Study'' for piano (2003) * '' Das Gesicht im Spiegel'' (''The Face in the Mirror''), opera in 16 scenes, libretto by

Roland Schimmelpfennig Roland Schimmelpfennig (born 19 September 1967) is a German theatre director and playwright. His plays are performed in more than 40 countries. Biography Schimmelpfennig was born in Gottingen. He began his career as a journalist in Istanbul, b ...

(2003) * Third String Quartet (''Hunting Quartet'') (2003) * ''Lied'' for orchestra (2003) * ''Chor'' for orchestra (2004) * ''Skeleton'' for percussion (2004) * ''Light Studies (I-VI)'' for violin, viola, accordion, clarinet, piano and orchestra (2004) * Octet for clarinet, horn, bassoon, 2 violins, viola, cello and double bass (2004) * Fourth String Quartet (2005) * ''Experiment on a Fugue'' (Fifth String Quartet with soprano) (2005) * ''Messe'' for full orchestra (2005) * ''Air'' for horn solo (2005) * ''Labyrinth'' for 48

chordophone String instruments, stringed instruments, or chordophones are musical instruments that produce sound from vibrating strings when a performer plays or sounds the strings in some manner. Musicians play some string instruments by plucking the s ...

s (2005) * ''Elegy'' for clarinet and orchestra (2006) * ''Echo-Fragments'' for clarinet and orchestral groups (2006) * ''Second Labyrinth'' for orchestral groups (2006) * ''Armonica'' for

glass harmonica The glass harmonica, also known as the glass armonica, glass harmonium, bowl organ, hydrocrystalophone, or simply the armonica or harmonica (derived from , ''harmonia'', the Greek word for harmony), is a type of musical instrument that uses a ...

and orchestra (2007) * Violin Concerto (2007) * '' Con brio'' for orchestra (2008) * ''Antiphon'' for orchestral group (2008) * Oboe Concerto (2009) * ''Flûte en suite'' for flute and orchestral groups (2011) * '' Babylon'', opera in 7 scenes, libretto by Peter Sloterdijk (2011–2012, 2018) * ''Third Labyrinth'' for soprano and orchestral groups (2013–2014) * ''Trauermarsch'' (''Funeral March'') for piano and orchestra (2014) * Viola Concerto (2015) * ''Once upon a time...'', five pieces in fairy-tale style for clarinet, viola and piano (2015) * ''

'',

oratorio An oratorio () is a large musical composition for orchestra, choir, and soloists. Like most operas, an oratorio includes the use of a choir, soloists, an instrumental ensemble, various distinguishable characters, and arias. However, opera is mus ...

for soloists, choirs, organ and orchestra (2016) * ''Sonatina facile'' for piano (2016) * Clarinet Quintet (2017) *

, five reminiscences for large orchestra (2017–2018) * Violin Concerto No. 2 (2018) * ''Labyrinth IV'' for soprano and ensemble (2019) * ''Study on Beethoven'' (String Quartet No. 6) (2019) * String Quartet No. 7, 8, 9, 10 (''Cavatina'') (Study on Beethoven II, III, IV, V) (2019/2020) * ''empty space'' for five players (flute, clarinet, percussion, piano and violin) (2020) * ''Zeitensprünge'', 450 bars for orchestra (2019, 2020) * ''Towards Paradise'' (''Labyrinth VI'') for trumpet and orchestra (2021) * ''Danse macabre'' for orchestra (2022)

Discography

* Lied,

, Bamberg Symphony (Tudor Records 2005) * String Quartets, Leipzig String Quartet ( MDG 2008) * Violin Concerto, Antiphon, Insel der Sirenen,

Christian Tetzlaff Christian Tetzlaff (born 29 April 1966) is a German violinist. Biography Tetzlaff was born in Hamburg. His parents were amateur musicians and met in a church choir. He began playing the violin and piano at the age of 6, and made his concert debu ...

Daniel Harding Daniel John Harding (born 31 August 1975) is a British conductor. Biography Harding was born in Oxford. He studied trumpet at Chetham's School of Music and was a member of the National Youth Orchestra at age 13. At age 17, Harding assembled ...

, Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra ( Ondine 2013) * String Quartet No. 3 (Hunting Quartet) (with Haydn and Schubert Quartets), Ragazze Quartet (

Channel Classics Channel Classics Records is a record label from the Netherlands, specializing in classical music. The managing director and producer is C. Jared Sacks, who grew up in Boston. Sacks was schooled as a professional horn player at the Oberlin Conse ...

2013) * Armonica, Antiphon, Souvenir bavarois,

Paavo Järvi Paavo Järvi (; born 30 December 1962) is an Estonian-American conductor. Early life Järvi was born in Tallinn, Estonia, to Liilia Järvi and the Estonian conductor Neeme Järvi. His siblings, Kristjan Järvi and Maarika Järvi, are also m ...

Frankfurt Radio Symphony Orchestra The Frankfurt Radio Symphony (german: hr-Sinfonieorchester) is the radio orchestra of Hessischer Rundfunk, the public broadcasting network of the German state of Hesse. From 1929 to 1950 it was named ''Frankfurter Rundfunk-Symphonie-Orchester''. F ...

(Pan Classics 2014) * Con brio (with Beethoven: Symphony No. 7 & 8), Mariss Jansons,

Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra The Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra (german: Symphonieorchester des Bayerischen Rundfunks, BRSO) is a German radio orchestra. Based in Munich, Germany, it is one of the city's four orchestras. The BRSO is one of two full-size symphony orchestr ...

(BR-Klassik 2015) This CD edition was awarded the Choc Classica 2013. * String Quartets, Minguet Quartet (

Wergo WERGO is a German record label focusing on contemporary classical music. It was founded in 1962 by German art historian and music publisher (1903–1975) and the musicologist Helmut Kirchmeyer. Their first release, filed under "WER 60001", was ...

2015) * Viola Concerto, Duos, Hunting Quartet,

Antoine Tamestit Antoine Tamestit (born 1979) is a French violist. Tamestit studied at the Conservatoire de Paris, and further with Jesse Levine at Yale University, and with Tabea Zimmermann. He won the 2001 Primrose International Viola Competition, the 2003 You ...

, Signum Quartet, Daniel Harding, Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra (

Harmonia Mundi Harmonia Mundi is an independent record label which specializes in classical music, jazz, and world music (on the World Village label). It was founded in France in 1958 and is now a subsidiary of PIAS Entertainment Group. Its Latin name ''h ...

2018) * Arche, Marlis Petersen, , Iveta Apkalna,

, Philharmonisches Staatsorchester Hamburg (

ECM ECM may refer to: Economics and commerce * Engineering change management * Equity capital markets * Error correction model, an econometric model * European Common Market Mathematics * Elliptic curve method * European Congress of Mathematics ...

2018) * Diabelli Variation (with Beethoven, et al.: The Diabelli Project),

Rudolf Buchbinder Rudolf Buchbinder (born 1 December 1946, Litoměřice, Czechoslovakia) is an Austrian classical pianist. Biography Buchbinder studied with Bruno Seidlhofer at the Vienna Academy of Music. In 1965, he made a tour of North and South Americas. In ...

, (

Deutsche Grammophon Deutsche Grammophon (; DGG) is a German classical music record label that was the precursor of the corporation PolyGram. Headquartered in Berlin Friedrichshain, it is now part of Universal Music Group (UMG) since its merger with the UMG family o ...

2020)

Recordings as clarinetist

* Rihm: Vier Studien zu einem Klarinettenquintett, Vier Male, Jörg Widmann, Minguet Quartet (

Ars Musici Ars Musici is a German classical music record label founded in Freiburg im Breisgau in 1993 by Rudolf Ruby after his retirement from Deutsche Harmonia Mundi. "The ARS MUSICI label was founded in Freiburg (Breisgau) in 1993. The label was soon very ...

2004) * Rihm: Music for Clarinet and Orchestra, Jörg Widmann, Sylvain Cambreling, SWR Sinfonieorchester Baden-Baden und Freiburg (SWRmusic 2010) * Elegie, Messe, Five Fragments, Jörg Widmann, Heinz Holliger, Christoph Poppen, Deutsche Radio Philharmonie Saarbrücken Kaiserslautern (ECM 2011) * Brahms: Clarinet Quintet, Jörg Widmann, Hagen Quartet (Myrios 2012) * Mozart: Clarinet Quintet, Jörg Widmann, Arcanto Quartet (Harmonia Mundi 2013) * Three Shadow Dances (with Mozart: Clarinet Concerto, Weber: Clarinet Concerto No. 1), Jörg Widmann, Peter Ruzicka, Deutsches Symphonie-Orchester Berlin ( Orfeo 2016) * Once upon a time... (with Schumann: ''

Märchenerzählungen ''Märchenerzählungen'' (Fairy tale narrations), Op. 132, is a trio composition by Robert Schumann in four movements for clarinet (violin ad libitum), viola and piano. He composed the clarinet-viola-piano trio in B-flat major, between 9 and 11 ...

''), Tabea Zimmermann, Jörg Widmann, (Myrios 2016) Opus Klassik 2018,

ICMA Icma is the name of one or more mountains in Peru. ICMA may refer to: * Institute of Cost and Management Accountants * International Cement Microscopy Association * International Capital Market Association * International Card Manufacturers Asso ...

Winner 2019 – Chamber music,

Diapason d'Or The Diapason d'Or (French for "Golden Tuning Fork") is a recommendation of outstanding (mostly) classical music recordings given by reviewers of '' Diapason'' magazine in France, broadly equivalent to "Editor's Choice", "Disc of the Month" in the ...

de l'Année 2018 Winner – Musique de chambre * Polyphonic Shadows (Light Study II), Third Labyrinth, , Christophe Desjardins, Jörg Widmann, Heinz Holliger, Emilio Pomárico, WDR Symphony Orchestra Cologne (Wergo 2018) * Intermezzi, Brahms Clarinet Sonatas,

András Schiff Sir András Schiff (; born 21 December 1953) is a Hungarian-born British classical pianist and conductor, who has received numerous major awards and honours, including the Grammy Award, Gramophone Award, Mozart Medal, and Royal Academy of Mu ...

, Jörg Widmann (ECM New Series 2020) Opus Klassik – Chamber music recording of the year

Recordings as conductor

* ad absurdum (with Mendelssohn: Symphonien No. 1 & 4),

Sergei Nakariakov Sergei Mikhailovich Nakariakov (russian: Серге́й Михайлович Накаряков; ; born May 10, 1977, in Gorky) is a Russian- Israeli virtuoso trumpeter residing in Paris, France, who came to prominence in the late 1990s. He ...

, Jörg Widmann,

(Orfeo 2016) * Experiment on a Fugue (with Mendelssohn: Symphony No. 5 "Reformation"),

Mojca Erdmann Mojca Erdmann (born 29 December 1975) is a German soprano who is particularly associated with the Mozart operas. She created the role of Ariadne in Rihm's '' Dionysos'' at the Salzburg Festival. Career Born in Hamburg, Erdmann sang in the ch ...

, Jörg Widmann, Irish Chamber Orchestra (Orfeo 2017) * 180 beats per minute, Fantasie (with Mendelssohn: Symphony No. 3 "Scottish", The Hebrides), Jörg Widmann, Irish Chamber Orchestra (Orfeo 2018)

Writings

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References

Citations

Bibliography

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External links

*
Jörg Widmann
at

*
Jörg Widmann
Harrison Parrott (agents)
Jörg Widmann

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Widmann, Jorg 1973 births 20th-century classical composers 21st-century classical composers 21st-century German conductors (music) Composers for piano Contemporary classical music performers Ernst von Siemens Composers' Prize winners German classical clarinetists German male conductors (music) German male classical composers German opera composers Hochschule für Musik Freiburg faculty Hochschule für Musik Karlsruhe alumni University of Music and Performing Arts Munich alumni Juilliard School alumni Living people Male opera composers Musicians from Munich String quartet composers 20th-century German composers 21st-century German composers 20th-century clarinetists 21st-century clarinetists 20th-century German male musicians 21st-century German male musicians