Willem Kersters
Willem Kersters (born February 9, 1929 in Antwerp ; † December 29, 1998 ibid) was a Belgian composer , professor and musician.
Life
Willem Kersters graduated from the Royal Flemish Conservatory in Antwerp in 1945 in the subjects of harmony and piano . He then completed his skills through further studies at the Royal Conservatory of Brussels with Jean Louël ( counterpoint ), Jean Absil and Marcel Quinet ( fugue ), Marcel Poot ( composition ) and René Defossez ( orchestral direction ). After graduating as a music teacher, he worked for several years in the cities of Tienen , Löwen and Aarschot . From 1961 to 1968 he held the position of music program director at Belgian Radio and Television (BRT) .
From 1962 he was a member of the teaching staff of the Royal Flemish Conservatory in Antwerp as a lecturer in harmony, later also in composition. In 1967 the Conservatory in Maastricht , Netherlands appointed him professor for music theory subjects. He ended these teaching activities in 1989. One of the students included a. Jan De Maeyer and Wim Henderickx .
Kersters has received national and international prizes and awards for his compositions. In 1990 he became a member of the Koninklijke Academie voor Wetenschappen, Letteren en Schone Kunsten van België .
style
In the early works of the 1950s there are influences from late Romanticism and Expressionism . Then Kersters developed his own composition technique based on tritone relationships. From 1960 he also dealt with twelve-tone technology and serialism , later he returned to tonal elements. From the mid-1970s he turned increasingly to vocal and choral music. His work comprises a total of over 120 compositions, including stage works (ballet, opera), orchestral works (including symphonies), chamber, organ, vocal and choral music.
Works
ballet
- 1956 Parwati opus 10
- 1959 Triomf van de geest opus 17
- 1973 Halewijn opus 62
- 1976 Uilenspiegel de geus opus 67
Opera
- 1983 Baes Gansendonck opus 72 in 3 acts after Hendrik Conscience
Works for orchestra
- 1953 De geestelijke bruiloft opus 1 for soprano, English horn, clarinet, piano and string quartet
- 1953 Concertino opus 2 for oboe and string orchestra
- 1955 Sinfonietta opus 7 for chamber orchestra
- 1958 Sinfonia Piccola opus 12
- 1958 Divertimento per archi opus 13 for string orchestra
- 1962 Vier oudvlaamse liederen for choir and orchestra
- 1962 symphony no.1 opus 22
- 1963 Plechtige overture - Overture solennelle op. 24 for large orchestra
- 1963 symphony number 2 opus 26
- 1964 Concertmuziek opus 28 for strings, piano, percussion and timpani
- 1965 Drie bagatellen opus 34 for string orchestra
- 1966 A Hymn of Praise opus 38 for speaker, vocal trio, choir and orchestra
- 1967 symphony number 3 opus 39
- 1968 symphony number 4 opus 45
- 1968 Meditation on the name BACH opus 46 for trumpet in D, piano and strings
- 1969 Contrasten opus 50 for percussion and orchestra
- 1972 Capriccio opus 59
- 1978 Concerto opus 69 for piano and orchestra
- 1985 De dans der Kristall opus 80 for medium voice and string orchestra
- 1986 Het zonnelied opus 81 for choir and orchestra
- 1987 symphony number 5 opus 83
- 1987 Ballade opus 84 for alto saxophone and string orchestra
- 1989 Concerto opus 86 for violin and orchestra
- 1995 De feesten van angst en pijn opus 96 for tenor, alto, reciter, choir, harp, piano, percussion and strings
- 1997 Concerto "Filia Guilmin" opus 103 for guitar and chamber orchestra
- 1998 Serenade No. 2 opus 105 for string orchestra, harp and percussion
Works for wind orchestra
- 1962 Psalms opus 21 for alto, male choir, brass, organ and timpani
- 1967 Sinfonietta opus 42 for wind orchestra
- 1973 Laudes opus 61 for brass and percussion
- 1974 Halewijn Ballade opus 62
- Three Rondos for brass quintet opus 48
- Valerius Overture opus 13
Works for organ
- 1961 Twee preludes opus 20
- 1965 Koraalfantasie opus 31
- 1967 Small suite - Petite suite opus 40
- 1967 Fantasia opus 43
- 1978 Variazioni opus 70
Other works
- 1969 Anaglyphos opus 51 for percussion orchestra
- 1970 Barbaarse dans opus 54 for alto, tenor, female choir and instrumental ensemble
- 1971 Angst - een dans opus 57 for tenor, speaker (recitatives), mixed choir, harp, piano and percussion orchestra
- 1974 Coïncidences opus 65 for 9 percussionists
Web links
- Works by Willem Kersters in the catalog of the German National Library
- List of works on: klassika.info
Individual evidence
- ↑ a b c d e Kris Gabriels: Kersters Willem (1929–1998) ( Memento from April 26, 2014 in the Internet Archive ), bio, biblio, discography, list of works on: Matrix 2001 (English)
- ↑ a b c Mark Delaere: Kersters, Willem. In: Ludwig Finscher (Hrsg.): The music in past and present . Second edition, personal section, volume 10 (Kemp - Lert). Bärenreiter / Metzler, Kassel et al. 2003, ISBN 3-7618-1120-9 ( online edition , subscription required for full access)
personal data | |
---|---|
SURNAME | Kersters, Willem |
BRIEF DESCRIPTION | Belgian composer |
DATE OF BIRTH | February 9, 1929 |
PLACE OF BIRTH | Antwerp |
DATE OF DEATH | December 29, 1998 |
Place of death | Antwerp |