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Day in the Branding

'Once you become suspicious, you develop more and more anxiety' - Meriç Artaç addresses fear and mistrust in her chamber opera Madam Koo

'A new piece is usually only heard once, then it disappears into a drawer forever.' Such a sigh I often hear, in all tones. Not only from composers, but also from ensembles, concert organisers, musicians and even subsidy providers. Good news, then, that Meriç Artaç's opera Madam Koo will be repeated twice this month, Wednesday 11 December in CC... 

'I am interested in situations or people that are overlooked in everyday life.' - Meriç Artaç two seasons guest composer of Day in the Fire.

'I always draw out my characters before I start composing. They are inspired by people I see on the street, personalities I admire, details that make someone special... I usually focus on one specific aspect of a character, a dominant mood that I then highlight in my composition.' Born in 1990 in Istanbul, Meriç Artaç was already... 

Between nappy and dishes - the (in)visibility of female composers

Amsterdam, 8 March 2018. Today is Women's Day, no one can fail to notice. The media are brimming with articles about women's unequal pay and their still limited representation in prestigious positions. Whether in politics, business, academia or the arts. Perhaps the most conservative is the classical music world. There, the female composer has yet to... 

Kate Moore wins Matthijs Vermeulen prize - as first woman ever

On Saturday 2 December, Australian-Dutch composer Kate Moore (b 1979) will receive the Matthijs Vermeulen Prize for her composition The Dam. The prize money is €20,000, made available by the Performing Arts Fund. The prize was established in 1972 and named after the Dutch composer and critic Matthijs Vermeulen (1888-1967). Until now, it invariably went to men, some even getting it two... 

Mayke Nas wins composition prize: 'I don't want fear, I want adventure'

Grandfather Louis Toebosch was a famous organist and composer. His daughter - her aunt - Moniek an equally famous artist and performer; mother recorder teacher, father Mozart-crazy: 'When I left home I couldn't hear a recorder or Mozart anymore!' Mayke Nas (Voorschoten, 1972) is no stranger to making music and composing. In doing so, she likes to avoid the beaten track and... 

Pierre Boulez is alive!?

He is the last surviving avant-gardist, and it will not have escaped new-music lovers that he turned 90 on Thursday, 26 March. I mean, of course, Pierre Boulez, the composer and conductor who once declared Schoenberg dead and suggested that perhaps opera houses should be blown up because of their moldy programming. The same man then tirelessly broke a lance for the music of Arnold Schoenberg ... 

Ironing or hitting

It will be hard to choose how we will musically fill our next weekend: will we stay in Amsterdam for the Amsterdam Marimba Weekend, or travel to The Hague, where Dag in de Branding is entirely dedicated to the string quartet? In short: are we going to string or strike? For those who can't decide, check out Amsterdam Sinfonietta and Slagwerk Den Haag later this month - they just do both!

The Amsterdam Marimba Weekend runs from 9 to 11 May and is themed 'The Eastern Connection'. The...

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Toonkunst Choir not afraid of Peasant Wedding Stravinsky

Toonkunstkoor Amsterdam has had a name to live up to since its establishment in 1829. In earlier times, it was invariably on hand when the Concertgebouw Orchestra and Willem Mengelberg performed large-scale choral works. Although the choir still consists of amateurs and its ties with the illustrious orchestra have weakened, it still puts (very) demanding pieces on its desks. For instance, the... 

Anna Mikhailova: 'Black Perfume is about addiction and fear'

Amsterdam, 10-12-2012 - Last weekend saw the start of the Babel Festival at the Ostadetheater, an initiative of the Diamantfabriek. Founded two years ago, this production group offers young makers the chance to develop small-scale musical theatre. This weekend sees the premiere of Black Perfume, by Russian composer Anna Mikhailova and Dutch director Annechien Koerselman, based on Mikhail Bulgakov's story Morphine.
Mikhailova (Moscow, 1984) studied with the notorious Tichon Chren...

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