Turkish composer and conductor
Utku Asuroglu builds dynamic musical landscapes imbued with unpredictable energy and powerful gesturality.
Notes from Underground explores the inner dialogues the author experiences during the process of composition. Each movement embodies a conversation or internal conflict, paying homage to Dostoevsky’s
Notes from Underground. The concerto constructs a layered electro-acoustic tapestry, fusing sonic manipulations, acoustic textures, traditional instruments and harpsichord, with live electronics. Through these intermingled elements, the piece challenges conventional concerto forms, engendering dynamic tension between structure and spontaneity.
Boris Jakopović, a Croatian composer and biologist, explores the diversity of entanglements between an instrument and electronics. In his piece
Circles and Rounds, Boris observes the interaction between the harpsichord and electronics, gradually shifting prominence between its constituent parts. The piece begins with repetitive “circles” dominated by the harpsichord, but as the composition progresses, it gradually becomes diluted, accentuated by pointillist highlights. The listener is again invited to hone in on the two sources of sound, which move in partially repetitive patterns (rounds), as new elements are introduced. Finally, the composition returns to the more dynamic “circles”, freed from melodic ostinato. Autonomous at the beginning, the acousmatic electronics is separate from the interaction with the instrument, while their direct connection intensifies as the piece approaches the climax.
Belgian composer
Daan Janssens creates works characterised by robust dramaturgical structures, broad musical arches and virtuoso instrumental expressiveness. In recent years, writing (longer) works for solo instrument and electronics has become a central element of Daan’s compositional practice. He always collaborates intensively with the musicians he writes for, exploring the instruments through the lens of their unique playing methods, preferences and sounds. The recordings made during these research sessions then become the basis for the electronics he designs. In
Nebulae he aims to evoke a long, slow-advancing circular movement. The piece begins by exploring the “marginal” sound of the harpsichord’s mechanics, gradually evolving towards the “classical” sound of the instrument, and finally returning to its starting point through the harpsichord’s interior.
Polish composer Aleksandra Gryka refuses to comment on her works or share her music scores. Her compositions remain closed worlds, fragmentary and elusive, containing narratives that prompt more questions than answers. On Youmec, the thought that sneaks through the bass and unpredictable arpeggios wanders between a sense of suspension and release. Meandering through aggressive clusters, splish-splash and grating electronic noises, it culminates in a concertante rave akin to a mysteriously ominous movie soundtrack.
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Gośka Isphording transforms the harpsichord in a contemporary soundscape. She is a member of the Riot Ensemble and co-founder of The Roentgen Connection, an ensemble that performs contemporary music on baroque instruments. She teaches harpsichord extended techniques at the Conservatorium van Amsterdam.
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Góska Isphording, harpsichord and electronics
Utku Asuroglu: Notes from Underground*, for harpsichord and electronics
Boris Jakopović: Circles and Rounds**, harpsichord and electronics
Daan Janssens: Nebulae***, harpsichord and electronics
Aleksandra Gryka: Yuomec, harpsichord and electronics
* premiere – commissioned by the 33rd MBZ and Muziekcentrum De Bijloke
** premiere – commissioned by the 33rd MBZ
*** premiere – commissioned by the Centre Henri Pousseur – Musique électronique / Musique mixte
co-production - MBZ and Muziekcentrum De Bijloke
supported by the Embassy of the Republic of Poland in Croatia
