The Xenakis Ensemble is a Dutch music ensemble dedicated to the performance of

contemporary classical music Contemporary classical music is classical music composed close to the present day. At the beginning of the 21st century, it commonly referred to the post-1945 modern forms of post-tonal music after the death of Anton Webern, and included se ...

. Based in Middelburg, it is known as one of the few ensembles specializing in the works of the composer

Iannis Xenakis Giannis Klearchou Xenakis (also spelled for professional purposes as Yannis or Iannis Xenakis; el, Γιάννης "Ιωάννης" Κλέαρχου Ξενάκης, ; 29 May 1922 – 4 February 2001) was a Romanian-born Greek-French avant-garde ...

. It is frequently conducted by

Diego Masson Diego Masson (born 21 June 1935) is a French conductor, composer, and percussionist. The son of artist André Masson and brother of the singer and actor Luís Masson, Diego Masson was born in Tossa de Mar, Spain. He studied piano and composi ...

, who conducted the performances of many of Xenakis's works, as well as other guest conductors including Huub Kerstens. Its concertmaster is Mifune Tsuji. The group was founded in 1980, at the initiative of the foundation Nieuwe MUZIEK Zeeland of Middelburg and the pianist

Geoffrey Douglas Madge Geoffrey Douglas Madge (born 3 October 1941) is an Australian classical pianist and composer. Biography Madge was born in Adelaide and took his first piano lessons at the age of eight. He later won the 1963 ABC Concerto and Vocal Competition. A ...

, with the approval of the composer Iannis Xenakis. Co-founder Ad van 't Veer died in June 2021. Its repertoire includes over 40 compositions by Xenakis, some of which, such as ''À l'île de Gorée'' (1986), were written for the group. The ensemble also performs recent works by

Luca Francesconi Luca Francesconi (born 17 March 1956) is an Italian composer. He studied at the Milan Conservatory, then with Karlheinz Stockhausen and Luciano Berio. Early years Luca Francesconi was born in Milan. His father was a painter who edited ''Il C ...

Morton Feldman Morton Feldman (January 12, 1926 – September 3, 1987) was an American composer. A major figure in 20th-century classical music, Feldman was a pioneer of indeterminate music, a development associated with the experimental New York School ...

Willem Breuker Willem Breuker (4 November 1944 – 23 July 2010) was a Dutch bandleader, composer, arranger, saxophonist, and clarinetist. Career During the mid 1960s, he played with percussionist Han Bennink and pianist Misha Mengelberg, co-founding the Insta ...

Jin Hi Kim Jin Hi Kim (born February 6, 1957 in Incheon, South Korea) is a composer and performer of '' komungo'' and electric komungo, and a Korean music specialist. Kim is known as a pioneer for introducing ''geomungo'' (거문고, a Korean fretted boar ...

Huib Emmer Huib Emmer (born 6 September 1951 in Utrecht) is a Dutch composer. He also plays electric guitar An electric guitar is a guitar that requires external amplification in order to be heard at typical performance volumes, unlike a standard aco ...

, and Bunita Marcus. The Xenakis Ensemble has released several CDs of the music of Iannis Xenakis (one in collaboration with the

harpsichord A harpsichord ( it, clavicembalo; french: clavecin; german: Cembalo; es, clavecín; pt, cravo; nl, klavecimbel; pl, klawesyn) is a musical instrument played by means of a musical keyboard, keyboard. This activates a row of levers that turn a ...

ist

Elisabeth Chojnacka Elisabeth Chojnacka (born Elżbieta Ukraińczyk; 10 September 1939 – 28 May 2017) was a Polish harpsichordist living in France. She was one of the world's foremost harpsichordists specializing in the performance of contemporary harpsichord mu ...

), as well as several other composers.

Discography

*1990 – ''Iannis Xenakis'' (Musifrance 2292-45030-2) *1995 – ''Xenakis Ensemble Live'' (BVHaast 9219) *1998 – ''Xenakis Ensemble'' (Bvhaast 9805) *1999 – ''Xenakis Ensemble'' (BVHaast 9903) *2000 – ''Xenakis - Orchestral & Chamber Works'' (Ultima). 2-CD set

References

External links

Xenakis Ensemble page
* All-Music entry*
ProfilePerformances at the Ars Musica festival in Brussels
Musical groups established in 1980 Contemporary classical music ensembles Chamber orchestras Musical groups from Zeeland Middelburg, Zeeland 1980 establishments in the Netherlands {{Netherlands-band-stub

Discography

See also

References

External links