On July 1, 2021, Louis Andriessen, one of the greatest composers in the Netherlands, passed away. Ensemble I SOLISTI pays tribute to the master. Not only with his own work, but also as a pedagogue, he had an influence on international musical life that could hardly be overestimated. There is music by Andriessen himself, but also by Martijn Padding – student, colleague and, above all, best friend of Andriessen. He composed an in memoriam: Two trumpets descending*. This creates a layered image of the man who would have turned 85 this year.

Andriessen’s activist Workers Union (1975) has lost none of its power: the pounding rhythms seem to hammer home the poor working conditions in factories. Freer, but no less urgent, sounds M is for Man, Mozart, Music (1991), written as a tribute to Mozart on the bicentenary of his death. Andriessen’s music is propelled by crackling saxes and brass instruments. The accompanying film by Peter Greenaway, with whom Andriessen also made the operas Rosa and Writing to Vermeer, is a hilarious postmodern collage.

*This composition assignment was made possible by the Netherlands Performing Arts Fund

Program
L. Andriessen, Calls 

M. Padding, Huil van de Wolf

L. Andriessen, Workers Union

M. Padding, Two trumpets descending

L. Andriessen, M is for Man, Mozart, Music met film van Peter Greenaway