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Hungary

  • Advent CalendarPremières

    György Kurtág – Circumdederunt… in memoriam Rita Wagner (World Première)

    by 5:4 December 15, 2024 • 06:00
    December 15, 2024 • 06:00

    Today’s Advent Calendar piece is one of the shortest works i’ve ever written about. Circumdederunt… in memoriam Rita Wagner by György Kurtág commemorates the Hungarian pianist who died in 2021. Back in 2019, my esteemed blogospherical colleague David Nice mentioned that, after attending a masterclass with Wagner, he had “probably …

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  • Festivals

    AFEKT 2023 (Part 1)

    by 5:4 November 6, 2023 • 11:20
    November 6, 2023 • 11:20

    Perhaps there’s never been a more appropriate time for a music festival to take as its theme, “Border State”. Borders seem more prominent in world events than ever: we’ve seen them being viciously violated, vigorously reinforced, valiantly defended. Conflicts continue to rage, and the resultant feeling is one of separation …

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  • Premières

    Proms 2023: the premières (Part 4)

    by 5:4 September 15, 2023 • 13:37
    September 15, 2023 • 13:37

    Some years ago I was at the Royal Opera House, watching and listening with a growing sense of disbelief and horror as a contemporary opera entirely failed to understand or meaningfully capture the source material upon which it was based. That was Thomas Adès’ wretched The Exterminating Angel, an embarrassingly …

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  • 20th CenturyAnniversariesCD/Digital releases

    Ligeti at 100

    by 5:4 May 28, 2023 • 05:00
    May 28, 2023 • 05:00

    Today marks the 100th anniversary of the birth of György Ligeti, one of the 20th century’s most significant and consistently engaging composers. i’ve been spending time lately with three new releases that together present an excellent overview of Ligeti’s output, from the perspectives of his music for piano, choir and …

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  • FestivalsPremières

    Proms 2019: Peter Eötvös – Alhambra; Tobias Broström – Nigredo: Dark Night of the Soul (UK Premières)

    by 5:4 July 30, 2019 • 17:23
    July 30, 2019 • 17:23

    The last two premières at the Proms have both been concertos: Alhambra, the third violin concerto by Peter Eötvös, and Nigredo: Dark Night of the Soul, a double-trumpet concerto by Swedish composer Tobias Broström. It’s been interesting to note how their overall approach to narrative is, at a fundamental level …

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  • Lent SeriesPremières

    Judit Varga – …alles Fleisch… (UK Première)

    by 5:4 April 8, 2019 • 16:06
    April 8, 2019 • 16:06

    All flesh is like grass and all its glory like the flower of grass. The grass withers, and the flower falls… Words from the biblical book of 1 Peter, set to music in Brahms’ German Requiem and thereby alluded to in the title of Hungarian composer Judit Varga‘s orchestral work …

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  • Concerts

    Birmingham Repertory Theatre Studio: Peter Eötvös – The Golden Dragon

    by 5:4 October 4, 2017 • 12:22
    October 4, 2017 • 12:22

    Let’s start at the end. It would be easy to fall into the trap of mistaking Peter Eötvös‘ music theatre piece The Golden Dragon, currently touring the UK in a production by Music Theatre Wales, as a serious, even moving piece. Or, rather, not mistaking it for that (few people, one hopes, are …

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  • CD/Digital releases

    Ravaging, torrential, ravishing, triumphant: Köhnen Pandí Duo – Darkness Comes in Two’s

    by 5:4 January 12, 2017 • 22:04
    January 12, 2017 • 22:04

    There’s a time to get excited about music, and there’s a time to leap around with irresistible, exuberant elation. 2017 is less than two weeks old, and already I have no doubt whatsoever that I’ve heard what will prove to be one of its very best albums. Looking back over the last …

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  • 20th CenturyAnniversariesBlasts from the Past

    Blasts from the Past: György Ligeti – Poème symphonique

    by 5:4 June 14, 2014 • 16:05
    June 14, 2014 • 16:05

    A couple of days ago marked the eighth anniversary of the death of Hungarian composer György Ligeti. To mark the event, and also begin a new occasional series on 5:4, i’d like to take a brief look back at one of the more enigmatic works of Ligeti’s career. Poème symphonique …

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  • ConcertsFestivalsPremières

    HCMF 2013: Quatuor Diotima

    by 5:4 November 18, 2013 • 01:05
    November 18, 2013 • 01:05

    This morning saw Brian Ferneyhough back at St Paul’s Hall, his music this time being performed by the outstanding Quatuor Diotima, alongside works by Gérard Pesson, Miroslav Srnka and György Ligeti. Ligeti’s 1968 String Quartet No. 2 came last in the concert, but i mention it first because—as Ligeti’s music always …

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  • FestivalsPremières

    Proms 2013: Peter Eötvös – DoReMi (UK Première)

    by 5:4 September 7, 2013 • 15:19
    September 7, 2013 • 15:19

    The penultimate première of this year’s Proms almost didn’t happen last Thursday, when two of the trio of percussionists failed to turn up, resulting in seven or eight rather tense minutes while presumably a host of minions dashed about behind the scenes attempting to find and drag them onstage. It …

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  • Lent SeriesSeasonal

    Dolour and death; the Way of the Cross, unadorned: Franz Liszt – Via Crucis

    by 5:4 March 19, 2008 • 10:29
    March 19, 2008 • 10:29

    As i’ve said before, my love of the chorale began in my teenage years with Bach. This love grew after hearing Franz Liszt‘s Holy Week cycle, Via Crucis, some years later. Not that chorales are a principal feature of the work; on the contrary, Liszt’s exploration of the Stations of …

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5:4
  • About
    • Other writings
  • Patrons
  • The Lists
    • Listening History
    • Complete List of Ratings
    • Compositions explored on 5:4
    • Albums and EPs reviewed on 5:4
    • Festivals reviewed on 5:4
    • Best Albums of the Years
    • The Proms premières – Poll results
  • The Dialogues
  • Mixtapes
    • Mixtapes
    • The Isolation Mixtapes
    • Mystery Mixtapes
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  • Contact
    • Contact Form
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