Personalities | Louis Andriessen | Contemporary | Classical

(Loo-e’ An-dre’-sen) b. 1939
Dutch composer

Born into a distinguished family of Dutch musicians, Andriessen made a name for himself as part of an activist group of young composers who demonstrated at concerts of the Concertgebouw and together created a two-hour musical ‘morality’, Reconstructie, on the life of Che Guevara. Following his encounter with American minimalism, works such as De staat (‘The Republic’, 1976, using text from Plato), De tijd (‘Time’, 1980–81), De snelheid (‘Velocity’, 1982–84) and De materie (‘Matter’, 1984–88) shun traditional orchestral combinations in favour of large ensembles dominated variously by voices, keyboards, electric guitars, saxophones and percussion. His operas of the 1990s, Rosa (1993–94) and Writing to Vermeer (1997–98), both with librettos by Peter Greenaway, marked a turn towards a renewed lyricism and serenity.

Recommended Recording:
De staat, Schönberg Ensemble (cond) Reinhard de Leeuw (Nonesuch/Warner)

Introduction | Contemporary | Classical
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