Trondheim Chamber Music Festival 22-29 SEPTEMBER 2024

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Mark Simpson as Festival Composer in 2020

Publisert: 27/05/2021

The Trondheim Chamber Music Festival proudly presents Mark Simpson as Festival Composer 2020. The young Brit emerged as a prodigious musical talent when he became the first ever winner of both the BBC Young Musician of the Year and BBC Proms/Guardian Young Composer of the Year competitions in 2006, 18 years old.



Simpson has now established himself as a major figure in the contemporary music world, hailed as a “revelation” (Bachtrack) and “standout” (Guardian). As a performer and composer, he is committed to new music and his compositions have been performed at the BBC Proms, Salzburg and Edinburgh International Festivals, Royal Festival Hall, Wigmore Hall and Barbican Centre London, amongst others. He was a BBC New Generation Artist from 2012-2014, and BBC Philharmonic’s Composer in Association from 2015-2019.

When asked if he was familiar with the Trondheim Chamber Music Festival, Simpson said:

– Of course! I knew it was one of the most significant festivals for the presentation of work by leading composers in Europe. Looking at the long list of previous composers it features many of the names that I grew up listening to and looked up to in the compositional world. So it’s a huge honour to be included in this list.

The Trondheim Chamber Music Festival will feature ten works by Simpson. A very highly respected clarinettist, Simpson will perform in four of them, including Darkness Moves for solo clarinet. Together with wind players from the Trondheim Symphony Orchestra he will play and lead his work Geysir, paired with Mozart`s Gran Partita. Simpson will also conduct the Trondheim Sinfonietta at a concert devoted wholly to his works.

Works by Simpson to be played at the festival:
  • Ariel (2009) for basset clarinet, violin, cello and piano
  • After Avedon (2017) for piano trio
  • Darkness Moves (2016) for solo clarinet
  • Geysir (2013) for 12 wind instruments and double bass
  • Hommage á Kurtag (2016) for clarinet, viola and piano
  • Lethe (2011) for solo trombone and ensemble
  • Lov(escape) (2006) for clarinet and piano
  • Straw Dogs (2010-11) for mixed ensemble (14 players)
  • Three Miniatures (2019) for solo flute
  • Three Verlaine Settings (2018) for tenor and piano

 

Read more about Simpson at his website here.

Photo credit: Bo Lutoslawski