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Miroslav Srnka Portrait at the DIALOGUES Festival in Salzburg

Dec. 05, 2017

Miroslav Srnka Portrait at the DIALOGUES Festival in Salzburg

Six works by Czech composer Miroslav Srnka were the principal focus of the 2017 DIALOGUES Festival in Salzburg, organized by the Mozarteum Foundation. Throughout the various concert programs from November 30 to December 3, Srnka's works were compared and contrasted with other Czech composers, including Leos Janácek and Antonín Dvorák, in an effort to “transcend the boundaries between the different genres, melding Srnka’s cosmos with classical, contemporary, and modern electronic music.”

The opening concert in the festival featured Srnka’s monodrama My Life Without Me, a piece for soprano and ensemble inspired by Isabelle Coixet’s 2003 film of the same title. Johannes Kalitzke directed the Austrian Ensemble for New Music with soprano Laura Aikin. The following programs on December 1 included Srnka’s Dreizehn Lieder für mittlere Stimme und Klavier, based on texts from picture postcards by Jurek Becker to his son Jonathan, and the Quatuor Diotima presented a string quartet by Janácek in contrast to Srnka’s string quartet Engrams, as well as his piano quintet Pouhou  vlnou / Qu’une vague with pianist Wilhem Latchoumia.

On December 2, conductor Clemens Schuldt led the Munich Chamber Orchestra in a performance of two Srnka works, Eighteen Agents for 19 Strings and No Night No Land No Sky for chamber orchestra. The festival closed with Srnka’s Prosty prostor/Simple Space for cello and one harmonic instrument performed by Marcus Pouget, and Les Adieux for ensemble with conductor Pablo Heras-Casado and the Mozarteumorchester Salzburg.


(Srnka's Engrams for String Quartet, featuring Quatuor Diotima)


Miroslav Srnka

My Life Without Me (2008/2013)

for soprano and ensemble

text based on a script by Isabel Coixet

2.2.0.2-2.2.2.1-3perc-hp.pno-str(2.0.2.1)

35’


Dreizehn Lieder (2007)

for medium voice and piano

text based on postcards of Jurek Becker to his son Jonathan

14’


Engrams (2011)

for string quartet

25’


Pouhou vlnou / Qu’une vague (2008)

for piano and string quartet

18’


Eighteen Agents (2012)

for 19 strings (6.5.4.3.1)

15’


No Night No Land No Sky (2014)

for chamber orchestra

2.2.2.2-2.2.0.0-timp-str

18’


Prosty prostor / Simple Space (2006)

for cello and one harmonic instrument

8’


Les Adieux (2004/2007)

for ensemble

1(pic, alt).1.1(bcl).1-1(pic).1.1.0-2perc-hp.pno-str(1.1.1.1)

9’

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