Wolfgang Mitterer

Wolfgang Mitterer (undated)

Wolfgang Mitterer (born June 6, 1958 in Lienz , East Tyrol ) is an Austrian composer and musician ( organ , keyboard ).

life and work

Vertical silence

Wolfgang Mitterer studied in 1977 in Graz with Otto Bruckner, then from 1978 to 1983 at the Musikhochschule in Vienna organ with Herbert Tachezi and composition with Heinrich Gattermeyer , before completing a year at the Electronic Music Studio (EMS) in Stockholm in 1983 . This was followed by study trips as a scholarship holder in Rome in 1988 and in Berlin in 1995/96. In 1991 Mitterer founded the Olongapo label .

Mitterer is considered one of the most important contemporary Austrian composers and pioneers in the field of electroacoustic music . Today he works a lot with other artists, often with international improvisation and jazz musicians such as Wolfgang Puschnig , Wolfgang Reisinger , Linda Sharrock , Klaus Dickbauer , Sainkho Namtchylak , Tscho Theissing , Tom Cora , Ernst Reijseger , Hōzan Yamamoto , Roscoe Mitchell , Georg Breinschmid , David Liebman , David Moss , Max Nagl , Achim Tang , Patrick Pulsinger , Christof Kurzmann , Christian Fennesz , Marc Ducret , Franz Koglmann , Louis Sclavis , Harry Pepl and others.

Mitterer also performs as an organist , where he interprets works by Bach , Messiaen and Ligeti , among others, in addition to his own . He played off-location like in a quarry and in a disused fortress in Tyrol . He also acted at the Donaueschinger Musiktage , the Styrian Autumn , as well as at the Darmstadt summer courses .

In addition to sound installations and numerous electronic collages , Wolfgang Mitterer also writes chamber music, scenic works, also operas, a piano concerto and music for orchestra and organ. He also works on experimental films, radio plays and theaters, has set silent films to music live, but also composed music for the shows of a fashion designer.

Wolfgang Mitterer was a lecturer at the Vienna Music University and at the Darmstadt Summer Courses for New Music . He is also a member of the Austro Mechana Supervisory Board .

Creation and works

Wolfgang Mitterer works and composes in the field of collective improvisation music, plays the organ and with electronic instruments . Spatial reference , which he often set to music in his title, gave works such as “Forest Music”, “Silbersand Music”, “Tower of Babel”, “Horizontal Noise”, “Vertical Silence” and “Labyrinth 6-11” a special shape. Sometimes up to 100 people worked on it, and many traditional ensembles, such as brass bands and choirs, were used. These projects ultimately came about through Wolfgang Mitterer's recordings in a wide variety of musical genres and through joint appearances with representatives of the DJ scene and concerts, but also through new setting of classical pieces from Bach to Schubert .

Wolfgang Mitterer also works on scenic and dramatic productions, the texts of which he partly compiles and adapts himself , such as "Ka und der Baboon", based on the Egyptian Book of the Dead, and "Massacre", based on religious murders from the 16th century after Christopher Marlowe or the song cycle “Im Sturm” based on songs by Franz Schubert.

In 2015 he wrote the score for the feature film Thank You for Bombing , as well as for the documentary Untitled (2017) and Die Kinder der Toten (2019).

Awards

• 1986 German Record Critics' Prize
• 1989 State grant for composition
• 1990 Prize of the Prix ​​Ars Electronica
• 1992 Max Brand Prize
• 1995 Emil Berlanda Prize
• 1995 Prix Futura Berlin
• 2002 Tyrolean State Prize for Art
• 2004 Prize of the City of Vienna for Music
• 2005 Erste Bank Composition Prize
• 2008 Prix Italia
• 2014 Austrian Art Prize for Music
• 2018 Austrian Film Award in the Best Music category for Untitled
• 2020 Austrian Film Award in the category Best Music for the Children of the Dead

Projects / works

Discography

His work “Fisis”, for orchestra, five soloists and three conductors

Published by col legno

• Concerto for piano and orchestra ( Donaueschingen ; 2000)
• Mixture 5 (live; Darmstadt 2004) (for organ and electronics)
• The brave little tailor (little opera for children; 2007)
• Im Sturm (with Georg Nigl ; 2007)
• Sopop (with Birgit Minichmayr ; 2008)
• Music for checking e-mails (2009)

Published by KAIROS Music

• Colored Noise (with Klangforum Wien and Peter Rundel )

Published by HatHutRecords

• Radio Fractal / Beat Music (with Patrick Pulsinger , John Schröder , Max Nagl , Herbert Reisinger ...)

Published by moers music

• Obsoderso (with Wolfgang Puschnig)
• Pat Brothers (with Wolfgang Reisinger, Wolfgang Puschnig, Linda Sharrock )
• Call Boys Inc. I (with Klaus Dickbauer, Günther Selichar and Gunter Schneider)

Published by LondonHALL

• Amusia

Published on wanadoo

• Masters of Zen Yamamoto / Mitterer ( Shakuhachi / Organ)

Limited editions; appeared on the self-founded label Olongapo

• Grand jeu
• Reluctant Games
• Purple grass
• Mimemas
• Matador
• Tower of Babel
• Call Boys Inc. II
• Two days till tomorrow
• Dirty tones
• IRS
• Carbon copy
• Piber 2003

Literature (selection)

Lexicon entries

• B. Günther (Hrsg.): Lexicon of contemporary music from Austria . Vienna 1997, p. 738–741 (with catalog raisonné ).
• Christian Fastl, Alexander Rausch: Mitterer, family. In: Oesterreichisches Musiklexikon . Online edition, Vienna 2002 ff., ISBN 3-7001-3077-5 ; Print edition: Volume 3, Verlag der Österreichischen Akademie der Wissenschaften, Vienna 2004, ISBN 3-7001-3045-7 ., P. 1453 f.
• M. Meller: Mitterer, Wolfgang . In: Ludwig Finscher (Hrsg.): Music in the past and present . Kassel 2008, p. 562-563 ( Supplementary Volume ).

Other fonts

• R. Kager: W. Mitterers Ka and the baboon . Sounds from the dead. In: ÖMZ 54 . 1999, p. 40 f .
• H. de La Motte-Haber: Con affetto: Wolfgang Mitterer - composer, improviser, organ player . In: Positions No. 38 . 1999, p. 11-13 .
• M. Meller: On the thin path to an explosion in the head . The musician and composer Wolfgang Mitterer. In: The Window No. 67 . 1999, p. 6356-6374 .
• M. Meller: Largo Macabro - Wolfgang Mitterer . In: New Music in Tyrol - Seven Positions in Contemporary Composition . Diploma thesis Univ. Innsbruck 2003, p. 95–112 (portrait and work analysis).
• W. Stryi: Improvisation is food for music . Interview with Wolfgang Mitterer. In: MusikTexte No. 86/87 . 2000, p. 55 f .
• M. Ziegler: To compose means to prepare a field . Wolfgang Mitterer's concert for piano, orchestra and electronics. Freiburg im Üechtland 2001.
• Chr. Baier: Paris is worth an opera: To Wolfgang Mitterer's opera “Massacre” . In: ÖMZ 58 . 2003, p. 5-9 .
• R. Schulz: Pluralism in the scene is important . Interview with Wolfgang Mitterer. In: Program book Festival Klangspuren Schwaz 2002 . S. 32-34 .
• L. Unterweger: Staging music: visual and spatial aspects of the music with special consideration of the spatial compositions . Ed .: W. Mitterer. Diploma thesis Univ., Vienna 2004.
• M. Meller, W. Mitterer: Portrait and work analysis . In: M. Fink, K. Drexel (Hrsg.): Positions of contemporary composing, Mg. Tirols . tape 3 . Innsbruck 2008.

Individual evidence

1. ^ Music Information Center Austria: composer Wolfgang Mitterer. Retrieved November 22, 2014 . 
2. ↑ Multimedia sound journey into the afterlife: World premiere of Wolfgang Mitterer's "Ka und der Pavian" in Darmstadt ( Memento from March 5, 2012 in the Internet Archive )
3. ↑ Awarding of the Austrian Art Prize 2014 in the Hofburg . APA notification of January 21, 2015, accessed on April 4, 2015.
4. ↑ Austrian Film Prize 2018: Prize Winner . Accessed January 31, 2018.
5. ↑ col legno: Works by Wolfgang Mitterer. Retrieved October 25, 2009 (→ artist → Wolfgang Mitterer). 
6. ↑ KAIROS Music Production: Wolfgang Mitterer Bio ( Memento from February 26, 2012 in the Internet Archive )
7. ↑ HatHutRecords: Releases the HatHutRecords info from the cover ( Memento from April 8, 2012 in the Internet Archive )
8. ^ Moers music: Publication by Wolfgang Mitterer 1 and 2 .
9. ↑ LondonHALL: Austria Tiro ( Memento from March 5, 2012 in the Internet Archive )

Web links

Commons : Wolfgang Mitterer  - Collection of images, videos and audio files

• Literature by and about Wolfgang Mitterer in the catalog of the German National Library
• Official website
• Wolfgang Mitterer music information center austria (mica)
• East Tyrolean messenger : Wolfgang Mitterer . Published by the municipality of Assling , December 12, 2002.
• Wolfgang Mitterer in the Internet Movie Database (English)