GEORGES LENTZ - composer / sound artist
GEORGES LENTZ - composer / sound artist
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Biography
For a shorter version (170 words), click here Through high profile international performances and CD releases, Georges Lentz has established himself in recent years as one of Australia's leading composers - this despite the fact that he is far from being a prolific writer. Being given to self-doubt, he rarely publishes new compositions, rarely accepts commissions, and tends to work on each of his pieces over a number of years, often working on several at the same time. Born in Luxembourg in 1965, Georges Lentz studied music at the Luxembourg Conservatoire, the Paris Conservatoire National Supérieur de Musique (1982-1986) and the Hannover Musikhochschule (1986-1990). Since 1989, he has been working on a cycle of works called "Caeli enarrant..." ('The Heavens are telling...' - Psalm XIX). His music is concerned with astronomy, a love of the Australian landscape and Aboriginal art, and reflects the composer's spiritual beliefs, questions and doubts. He has been living in Australia since 1990. Georges Lentz' compositions have been widely played in Europe, the USA, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Japan and China. Many renowned ensembles have performed his works, among them: Deutsches Symphonie-Orchester Berlin, Gürzenich-Orchester Köln (Cologne Philharmonic), Düsseldorfer Symphoniker, Bochumer Symphoniker, Netherlands Radio Philharmonic Orchestra, BBC Symphony Orchestra London, BBC National Orchestra of Wales, Hallé Orchestra Manchester, ORF Symphony Orchestra Vienna, Orchestre Philharmonique du Luxembourg, Orchestra of the Sibelius Academy Helsinki, St Louis Symphony Orchestra, Sydney Symphony Orchestra, Melbourne Symphony Orchestra, Tokyo Metropolitan Symphony Orchestra, New Japan Philharmonic, Nieuw Sinfonietta Amsterdam, Prague Chamber Orchestra, Australian Chamber Orchestra, Ensemble Continuum New York, Ensemble Oriol Berlin, Ensemble 24 Sydney, Australian String Quartet, Vilnius String Quartet, Indiana University New Music Ensemble, Cleveland New Music Ensemble... His music has been played at important international festivals and in many of the world's great concert halls, including the Philharmonie Berlin, Konzerthaus Vienna, Musikverein Vienna, Concertgebouw Amsterdam, Wigmore Hall London, Rudolfinum Prague, Carnegie Hall New York, Kennedy Center Washington, Suntory Hall Tokyo, Sydney Opera House... In 1997 Georges Lentz won the Paul Lowin Prize for orchestral composition, the most prestigious composition prize in Australia. His orchestral work 'Guyuhmgan' was the top recommended work at the 2002 UNESCO International Rostrum of Composers in Paris. His latest compositions include 'Monh' (2001-2005) for solo viola and orchestra, (written for German soloist Tabea Zimmermann, and co-commissioned by the BBC, the Echternach Music Festival and the Sydney Symphony Orchestra), as well as 'Ingwe' (2003-2009), a 60 minute work for solo electric guitar (written for young Australian guitatist Zane Banks). In 2009, Monh won the APRA award for best composition by an Australian composer. In recent years, Georges Lentz has been more and more interested in and influenced by musical improvisation, sound art and sound sculpture, as well as digital music. In April 2022, the Cobar Sound Chapel, a long-cherished dream, was opened in Cobar in Outback NSW. It is a purpose-built venue, designed by architect Glenn Murcutt, to permanently house the surround-sound four-channel projection of Lentz' vast digital composition "String Quartet(s)" (2000-2022). He is currently working on a new violin concerto for Arabella Steinbacher, to be premiered in 2023. Georges Lentz' works are published by Universal Edition in Vienna.
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