Alexander Voormolen

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Alexander Nicolaas Voormolen (born March 3, 1895 in Rotterdam , † November 12, 1980 in Leidschendam ) was a Dutch composer .

Life

Alexander Voormolen, son of a military man and politician, came to the Utrecht Conservatory at the age of fourteen , where he studied composition with Johan Wagenaar and piano with Willem and Marinus Petri . In 1916 he went to Paris on the recommendation of Rhené-Baton , who had conducted his overture La mort de Tintagiles , where he continued his studies with Albert Roussel and came into contact with Maurice Ravel , Alfredo Casella , Frederick Delius and Florent Schmitt . Ravel campaigned for the printing of his works. After the end of the First World WarVoormolen returned to the Netherlands. There he worked as a critic for the Nieuwe Rotterdamsche Courant from 1921 and worked as a librarian at the Conservatory in The Hague from 1938 to 1955 .

During the German occupation , Voormolen was one of the most performed Dutch composers. In addition to Henk Badings and Willem Pijper , he received a State Prize for Music in 1941. The "Ereraad voor de muziek" established after the liberation excluded him from musical life for 3 years. In 1955, however, Vormoolen was awarded a state scholarship that enabled him to concentrate on his compositional work. In 1961 he received the Visser Neerlandia Prize for his Three songs on British verse and the Johan Wagenaar Prize for his complete works. In 1976 he received the “Penning van de Rotte” from the city of Rotterdam, and in 1978 Voormolen was made an honorary member of the Hague Artists' Circle.

plant

Alexander Voormolen's earlier compositional work is harmoniously influenced by Debussy , Ravel and Delius. Later he strived for a more individual style, which was expressed for example through recourse to Dutch folk tunes and neoclassical or romantic tendencies. The two Baron Hop Suites (1924 and 1931), the orchestral variations De Drie Ruitertjes (1927) and the Concerts for Oboe (1938) and 2 Oboes (1933) became particularly well known. Influences from Max Reger and Anton Bruckner can be felt in the Sinfonia Concertante (1951) and Ciacona e fuga (1958).

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personal data
SURNAME Voormolen, Alexander
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Voormolen, Alexander Nicolaas (full name)
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Dutch composer
DATE OF BIRTH March 3, 1895
PLACE OF BIRTH Rotterdam
DATE OF DEATH November 12, 1980
Place of death Sorry