János Négyesy
Encyclopedia
János Négyesy is a Hungarian
violin
ist with a particular interest in contemporary music. He performed world premieres of numerous works, the first two books of the Freeman Etudes
(etudes I–XVI and XVII–XXXII) by American composer John Cage
among others. He was also the first Europe
an violinist who recorded the complete Violin and Piano Sonatas of Charles Ives
(with pianist
Cornelius Cardew
). He is the author of a teaching and reference book on violin techniques, which was commissioned after he met Pierre Boulez
at IRCAM
in 1976. In 1979, he joined the faculty of the University of California
at San Diego.
He is also known for his computer paintings. He began doing these artworks after moving to San Diego, California
.
, Hungary
in 1938. His father was taken by the Nazis to a concentration camp, from where he never returned. He got his first violin at the age of four, and only six months later he gave his first public concert at his school. According to him, this was the moment when he decided to became a violinist. He later became a student of Ferenc Gábriel at the Liszt Ferenc Academy of Music of Budapest
, who introduced him to Tibor Varga, a former student of Gábriel before World War II
. After receiving an invitation in 1965, Négyesy moved to Detmold
and continued his studies with Varga
. From 1970 to 1974 he served as concert master of the Radio Berlin Orchestra
, which was led by Lorin Maazel
at the time. In 1976 he was invited by French composer Pierre Boulez
to IRCAM
for a week of performances. This invitation resulted in a commission for Négyesy to write a book on violin techniques.
In 1979, while staying in Lisboa he received a phone call at 3 a.m. asking him if he would join the Music Department at UCSD
. Later it turned out that this call changed his life: as of 2011, he is an active teacher at UCSD
. It was there in San Diego where he met Finnish violinist Päivikki Nykter, a former student of his, who became his wife in 1993. During the past decades they made several recordings together, the complete violin duos of Béla Bartók
and compositions dedicated to them, among others.
There are several composers who dedicated pieces to Négyesy (probably the most notable is One6 by John Cage
) including Attila Bozay, Carlos Fariñas
, Vinko Globokar
, Georg Hajdu
, Roger Reynolds
, Robert Wittinger and Isang Yun
. He also has notable recordings of pieces of composers like John Cage
, Morton Feldman
or Kaija Saariaho
. Recently he also became regarded as a master of Max Mathews
' electronic violin.
Hungary
Hungary , officially the Republic of Hungary , is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is situated in the Carpathian Basin and is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine and Romania to the east, Serbia and Croatia to the south, Slovenia to the southwest and Austria to the west. The...
violin
Violin
The violin is a string instrument, usually with four strings tuned in perfect fifths. It is the smallest, highest-pitched member of the violin family of string instruments, which includes the viola and cello....
ist with a particular interest in contemporary music. He performed world premieres of numerous works, the first two books of the Freeman Etudes
Freeman Etudes
Freeman Etudes are a set of etudes for solo violin composed by John Cage. Like the earlier Etudes Australes for piano, these works are incredibly complex, nearly impossible to perform, and represented for Cage the "practicality of the impossible" as an answer to the notion that resolving the...
(etudes I–XVI and XVII–XXXII) by American composer John Cage
John Cage
John Milton Cage Jr. was an American composer, music theorist, writer, philosopher and artist. A pioneer of indeterminacy in music, electroacoustic music, and non-standard use of musical instruments, Cage was one of the leading figures of the post-war avant-garde...
among others. He was also the first Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
an violinist who recorded the complete Violin and Piano Sonatas of Charles Ives
Charles Ives
Charles Edward Ives was an American modernist composer. He is one of the first American composers of international renown, though Ives' music was largely ignored during his life, and many of his works went unperformed for many years. Over time, Ives came to be regarded as an "American Original"...
(with pianist
Pianist
A pianist is a musician who plays the piano. A professional pianist can perform solo pieces, play with an ensemble or orchestra, or accompany one or more singers, solo instrumentalists, or other performers.-Choice of genres:...
Cornelius Cardew
Cornelius Cardew
Cornelius Cardew was an English experimental music composer, and founder of the Scratch Orchestra, an experimental performing ensemble. He later rejected the avant-garde in favour of a politically motivated "people's liberation music".-Biography:Cardew was born in Winchcombe, Gloucestershire...
). He is the author of a teaching and reference book on violin techniques, which was commissioned after he met Pierre Boulez
Pierre Boulez
Pierre Boulez is a French composer of contemporary classical music, a pianist, and a conductor.-Early years:Boulez was born in Montbrison, Loire, France. As a child he began piano lessons and demonstrated aptitude in both music and mathematics...
at IRCAM
IRCAM
IRCAM is a European institute for science about music and sound and avant garde electro-acoustical art music. It is situated next to, and is organizationally linked with, the Centre Pompidou in Paris...
in 1976. In 1979, he joined the faculty of the University of California
University of California, San Diego
The University of California, San Diego, commonly known as UCSD or UC San Diego, is a public research university located in the La Jolla neighborhood of San Diego, California, United States...
at San Diego.
He is also known for his computer paintings. He began doing these artworks after moving to San Diego, California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
.
Biography
János Négyesy was born in BudapestBudapest
Budapest is the capital of Hungary. As the largest city of Hungary, it is the country's principal political, cultural, commercial, industrial, and transportation centre. In 2011, Budapest had 1,733,685 inhabitants, down from its 1989 peak of 2,113,645 due to suburbanization. The Budapest Commuter...
, Hungary
Hungary
Hungary , officially the Republic of Hungary , is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is situated in the Carpathian Basin and is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine and Romania to the east, Serbia and Croatia to the south, Slovenia to the southwest and Austria to the west. The...
in 1938. His father was taken by the Nazis to a concentration camp, from where he never returned. He got his first violin at the age of four, and only six months later he gave his first public concert at his school. According to him, this was the moment when he decided to became a violinist. He later became a student of Ferenc Gábriel at the Liszt Ferenc Academy of Music of Budapest
Budapest
Budapest is the capital of Hungary. As the largest city of Hungary, it is the country's principal political, cultural, commercial, industrial, and transportation centre. In 2011, Budapest had 1,733,685 inhabitants, down from its 1989 peak of 2,113,645 due to suburbanization. The Budapest Commuter...
, who introduced him to Tibor Varga, a former student of Gábriel before World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
. After receiving an invitation in 1965, Négyesy moved to Detmold
Detmold
Detmold is a city in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany, with a population of about 74,000. It was the capital of the small Principality of Lippe from 1468 until 1918 and then of the Free State of Lippe until 1947...
and continued his studies with Varga
Tibor Varga
Tibor Varga was a Hungarian violinist and conductor....
. From 1970 to 1974 he served as concert master of the Radio Berlin Orchestra
Deutsches Symphonie-Orchester Berlin
The Deutsches Symphonie-Orchester Berlin is an orchestra based in Berlin, Germany. It was founded in 1946 by American occupation forces as the RIAS-Symphonie-Orchester . It was also known as the American Sector Symphony Orchestra...
, which was led by Lorin Maazel
Lorin Maazel
Lorin Varencove Maazel is an American conductor, violinist and composer.- Early life :Maazel was born to Jewish-American parents in Neuilly-sur-Seine in France and brought up in the United States, primarily at his parents' home in Pittsburgh's Oakland neighborhood. His father, Lincoln Maazel , was...
at the time. In 1976 he was invited by French composer Pierre Boulez
Pierre Boulez
Pierre Boulez is a French composer of contemporary classical music, a pianist, and a conductor.-Early years:Boulez was born in Montbrison, Loire, France. As a child he began piano lessons and demonstrated aptitude in both music and mathematics...
to IRCAM
IRCAM
IRCAM is a European institute for science about music and sound and avant garde electro-acoustical art music. It is situated next to, and is organizationally linked with, the Centre Pompidou in Paris...
for a week of performances. This invitation resulted in a commission for Négyesy to write a book on violin techniques.
In 1979, while staying in Lisboa he received a phone call at 3 a.m. asking him if he would join the Music Department at UCSD
University of California, San Diego
The University of California, San Diego, commonly known as UCSD or UC San Diego, is a public research university located in the La Jolla neighborhood of San Diego, California, United States...
. Later it turned out that this call changed his life: as of 2011, he is an active teacher at UCSD
University of California, San Diego
The University of California, San Diego, commonly known as UCSD or UC San Diego, is a public research university located in the La Jolla neighborhood of San Diego, California, United States...
. It was there in San Diego where he met Finnish violinist Päivikki Nykter, a former student of his, who became his wife in 1993. During the past decades they made several recordings together, the complete violin duos of Béla Bartók
Béla Bartók
Béla Viktor János Bartók was a Hungarian composer and pianist. He is considered one of the most important composers of the 20th century and is regarded, along with Liszt, as Hungary's greatest composer...
and compositions dedicated to them, among others.
There are several composers who dedicated pieces to Négyesy (probably the most notable is One6 by John Cage
John Cage
John Milton Cage Jr. was an American composer, music theorist, writer, philosopher and artist. A pioneer of indeterminacy in music, electroacoustic music, and non-standard use of musical instruments, Cage was one of the leading figures of the post-war avant-garde...
) including Attila Bozay, Carlos Fariñas
Carlos Fariñas
Carlos Fariñas was a Cuban composer. He was one of the most important masters of the Cuban avant-garde in the 1960s along with Leo Brouwer and Juan Blanco....
, Vinko Globokar
Vinko Globokar
Vinko Globokar is a French avant-garde composer and trombonist of Slovene descent.His work is noted for its use of unconventional and extended techniques, closely allying him to contemporaries Salvatore Sciarrino and Helmut Lachenmann...
, Georg Hajdu
Georg Hajdu
Georg Hajdu is a German composer of Hungarian descent. His work is dedicated to the combination of music, science and computer technology. He is noted for his opera Der Sprung – Beschreibung einer Oper and the network music performance environment Quintet.net.-Biography:Hajdu was born to Hungarian...
, Roger Reynolds
Roger Reynolds
Roger Reynolds is an American composer born July 18, 1934 in Detroit, Michigan. He is a professor at the University of California at San Diego. He received an undergraduate degree in engineering physics from the University of Michigan where he later studied composition with Ross Lee Finney...
, Robert Wittinger and Isang Yun
Isang Yun
Isang Yun was a Korean-German composer originally from Korea. According to his official publisher's Boosey & Hawkes biography of him, he was granted political asylum by West Germany, eventually becoming a naturalised German citizen, following his abduction and torture in 1967 by the South Korean...
. He also has notable recordings of pieces of composers like John Cage
John Cage
John Milton Cage Jr. was an American composer, music theorist, writer, philosopher and artist. A pioneer of indeterminacy in music, electroacoustic music, and non-standard use of musical instruments, Cage was one of the leading figures of the post-war avant-garde...
, Morton Feldman
Morton Feldman
Morton Feldman was an American composer, born in New York City.A major figure in 20th century music, Feldman was a pioneer of indeterminate music, a development associated with the experimental New York School of composers also including John Cage, Christian Wolff, and Earle Brown...
or Kaija Saariaho
Kaija Saariaho
Kaija Saariaho is a Finnish composer.Kaija Saariaho studied composition in Helsinki, Freiburg and Paris, where she has lived since 1982. Her studies and research at IRCAM have had a major influence on her music and her characteristically luxuriant and mysterious textures are often created by...
. Recently he also became regarded as a master of Max Mathews
Max Mathews
Max Vernon Mathews was a pioneer in the world of computer music.-Biography:...
' electronic violin.
Discography
- Dedications – Works for Two Violins – Seven works for violin duo written expressly for János Négyesy and Päivikki Nykter. Aucourant Records, 2000.
- Solo Violin Recital – Works by five contemporary women composers. Aucourant Records, 2006.
External links
- An interview with János Négyesy.
- János Négyesy in DRAMDatabase of Recorded American MusicThe Database of Recorded American Music is a continually growing, online resource providing on-demand, high-quality streaming access to nearly 9,000 essential musical works from 15 record labels, along with their liner notes, album art, and other related materials...
. - The unofficial website of János Négyesy.