Thea Derks traces the musical footsteps of Reinbert de Leeuw. Panorama de Leeuw XXXII, 5 July 2017: Györgi Kurtág.
Today the 32nd episode of ‘Panorama de Leeuw’, a programme by Thea Derksen, inspired by her biography Reinbert de Leeuw, mens of melodie.
In the course of his career Reinbert built strong relationships with internationally renowned composers. In the last episode we spotlighted the Hungarian composer Györgi Ligeti, whose music was programmed in Reinbert’s Rondom Series as early as the 1970s.
Reinbert was only later introduced to the work of Ligeti’s compatriot Györgi Kurtág. As far as we know his music was played for the first time during a recital by pianist Geoffrey Madge in 1975. Five years later Kurtág was featured in the New Music Festival in Middelburg and the Residential Orchestra The Hague performed two of his song cycles in the early 1980s. Kurtág was the featured composer of the Holland Festival in 1987 and later that year De Leeuw conducted his 4 Capriccios opus 9.
Just like Ligeti, Kurtág was very enthusiastic about De Leeuw’s unconditional dedication, and he became his favourite conductor. From 2013 Reinbert has been recording all Kurtág’s conducted works for a box set that was released in June 2017 by the German label ECM. Today we will play a number of pieces from this box set.
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György Kurtág:
1. 4 Capriccios, opus 9.
Asko|Schönberg conducted by Reinbert de Leeuw. With Natalia Zagorinskaja, soprano.
2. What is the Word.
Asko|Schönberg conducted by Reinbert de Leeuw. With Gerrie de Vries, mezzo-soprano.
3. …quasi una fantasia…, opus 27 no 1.
Asko|Schönberg conducted by Reinbert de Leeuw. With Tamara Stefanovich, piano.
4. Opus 27 no 2: Double concerto.
Asko|Schönberg conducted by Reinbert de Leeuw. With Tamara Stefanovich, piano & Jean-Guihen Queyras, cello.
Compiler, host and sound engineer: Thea Derks
