Karl Aage Rasmussen
Encyclopedia
Karl Aage Rasmussen is a Danish composer and writer.
Quotation
and particularly collage
played an important role in his music from the early 70s, but increasingly he used pre-existing musical material in new connections and for new purposes, most often in a densely woven montage of small idioms which in themselves were too tiny to work as quotes, but were put together so closely as to create entirely new patterns. He continued to use montag
e technique, but the non-directional expression was gradually replaced by developmental forms. This is apparent in music for the stage and was later continued in works such as ‘A Symphony in Time’ and the string quartets ‘Solos and Shadows’ and ‘Surrounded by Scales’.
The chamber symphony ’Movements on a Moving Line’ marks the beginning of a long period dominated by an interest in time and tempo, here as a kind of time-travel where the same music seems to appear and disappear in different tempi. New conceptions of time, partly related to the self-similarity in so-called fractal
mathematics, has dominated his music since then. In more recent years psychological and dramatic dimensions have emerged in works such as the violin concerto, ’Scherzo with Bells’ and ’Webs in a stolen Dream’.
For more than two decades Rasmussen worked as full professor of composition at the Academy of Music in Aarhus, Denmark. Among his students: Louis Aguirre Rovira, Kaj Aune, Peter Bruun
, Anders Brødsgaard, Karsten Fundal, Michael Nyvang, and Simon Steen-Andersen.
Rasmussen is a prolific writer of essay
s, so far collected in three volumes. His books on Glenn Gould
, Robert Schumann
and Sviatoslav Richter
have reached a wide audience. Moreover he has lately been engaged in several large projects centered around the music of Franz Schubert
. Schubert left his opera ’Sakontala’ unfinished and with only the parts for singers sketched out, but Rasmussen completed and orchestrated a performing version of the opera, first performed in Stuttgart
2006. He has further reconstructed what he believes to be Schubert's ’Gastein’ symphony, formerly considered lost, and an orchestral version of Schubert's melodrama ’Der Taucher’ commissioned by the Danish singer Bo Skovhus
.
Quotation
Quotation
A quotation or quote is the repetition of one expression as part of another one, particularly when the quoted expression is well-known or explicitly attributed by citation to its original source, and it is indicated by quotation marks.A quotation can also refer to the repeated use of units of any...
and particularly collage
Collage
A collage is a work of formal art, primarily in the visual arts, made from an assemblage of different forms, thus creating a new whole....
played an important role in his music from the early 70s, but increasingly he used pre-existing musical material in new connections and for new purposes, most often in a densely woven montage of small idioms which in themselves were too tiny to work as quotes, but were put together so closely as to create entirely new patterns. He continued to use montag
Montag
Montag is the German word for Monday; it can refer to:People*Carol Montag, American folk singer-songwriter*Heidi Montag, one of the main cast members on MTV's The Hills, sister of Holly Montag*Holly Montag , American television personality...
e technique, but the non-directional expression was gradually replaced by developmental forms. This is apparent in music for the stage and was later continued in works such as ‘A Symphony in Time’ and the string quartets ‘Solos and Shadows’ and ‘Surrounded by Scales’.
The chamber symphony ’Movements on a Moving Line’ marks the beginning of a long period dominated by an interest in time and tempo, here as a kind of time-travel where the same music seems to appear and disappear in different tempi. New conceptions of time, partly related to the self-similarity in so-called fractal
Fractal
A fractal has been defined as "a rough or fragmented geometric shape that can be split into parts, each of which is a reduced-size copy of the whole," a property called self-similarity...
mathematics, has dominated his music since then. In more recent years psychological and dramatic dimensions have emerged in works such as the violin concerto, ’Scherzo with Bells’ and ’Webs in a stolen Dream’.
For more than two decades Rasmussen worked as full professor of composition at the Academy of Music in Aarhus, Denmark. Among his students: Louis Aguirre Rovira, Kaj Aune, Peter Bruun
Peter Bruun
Peter Bruun is a Danish composer. He is a native of Aarhus, and studied philosophy at Aarhus University before turning to composition.He won the Nordic Council Music Prize in 2008 for his composition Miki Alone.-References:...
, Anders Brødsgaard, Karsten Fundal, Michael Nyvang, and Simon Steen-Andersen.
Rasmussen is a prolific writer of essay
Essay
An essay is a piece of writing which is often written from an author's personal point of view. Essays can consist of a number of elements, including: literary criticism, political manifestos, learned arguments, observations of daily life, recollections, and reflections of the author. The definition...
s, so far collected in three volumes. His books on Glenn Gould
Glenn Gould
Glenn Herbert Gould was a Canadian pianist who became one of the best-known and most celebrated classical pianists of the 20th century. He was particularly renowned as an interpreter of the keyboard music of Johann Sebastian Bach...
, Robert Schumann
Robert Schumann
Robert Schumann, sometimes known as Robert Alexander Schumann, was a German composer, aesthete and influential music critic. He is regarded as one of the greatest and most representative composers of the Romantic era....
and Sviatoslav Richter
Sviatoslav Richter
Sviatoslav Teofilovich Richter was a Soviet pianist well known for the depth of his interpretations, virtuoso technique, and vast repertoire. He is widely considered one of the greatest pianists of the 20th century.-Childhood:...
have reached a wide audience. Moreover he has lately been engaged in several large projects centered around the music of Franz Schubert
Franz Schubert
Franz Peter Schubert was an Austrian composer.Although he died at an early age, Schubert was tremendously prolific. He wrote some 600 Lieder, nine symphonies , liturgical music, operas, some incidental music, and a large body of chamber and solo piano music...
. Schubert left his opera ’Sakontala’ unfinished and with only the parts for singers sketched out, but Rasmussen completed and orchestrated a performing version of the opera, first performed in Stuttgart
Stuttgart
Stuttgart is the capital of the state of Baden-Württemberg in southern Germany. The sixth-largest city in Germany, Stuttgart has a population of 600,038 while the metropolitan area has a population of 5.3 million ....
2006. He has further reconstructed what he believes to be Schubert's ’Gastein’ symphony, formerly considered lost, and an orchestral version of Schubert's melodrama ’Der Taucher’ commissioned by the Danish singer Bo Skovhus
Bo Skovhus
Bo Skovhus is a Danish opera singer .Skovhus studied at the Royal Academy of Music in Aarhus, at the Royal Academy for Opera of Copenhagen and in New York with Oren Brown....
.
Opera
- Jephta (1977)
- Majakovskij (1978)
- Jonah (radio-opera 1983)
- Our Hoffmann (klaverteater, 1986)
- The Sinking of the Titanic (1993)
- Sakontala (reconstruction of an unfinished opera by Franz Schubert, 2003)
Orchestral
- Recapitulations (1968)
- Symphonie Classique (1969)
- Anfang und Ende (1973)
- A Symphony in Time (1982)
- Movements on a Moving Line (1987)
- Three Friends (1995)
- The Lion, the Mouse, the big Elephant and Jens, the Ant (1997, tale for children after Asger JornAsger JornAsger Oluf Jorn was a Danish painter, sculptor, ceramic artist, and author. He was a founding member of the avant-garde movement COBRA and the Situationist International...
) - Scherzo with Bells (1996)
- A Tempo (2001)
- Postludes, for 23 solostrings (2007)
- Building (2007)
Concertante
- Contrafactum, cello concerto (1980)
- Violinconcerto("Sinking through the Dream Mirror", 1993)
- Double concerto for harp and guitar (1998)
- Invisible Mirrors, for guitar and chamber orchestra
Chamber music
- This moment (1966)
- Resonance (1972)
- Love is in the World (1975)
- A Ballad of Game and Dream (1975)
- Berio Mask (1977)
- Parts Apart (1978)
- Italian concerto (1981)
- Four, Five – for brass quintet (1982)
- Solos and Shadows (string quartet, 1983)
- Surrounded by Scales (string quartet, 1985)
- Movements on a Moving Line (chamber version, 1988)
- Webs in a Stolen Dream (1996)
- Twin Dream (1998)
- Trauergondol (1998)
- Camera oscura, saxophone quintet (2001)
- Liri (2008)
Arrangements, transcriptions etc.
- Carl NielsenCarl NielsenCarl August Nielsen , , widely recognised as Denmark's greatest composer, was also a conductor and a violinist. Brought up by poor but musically talented parents on the island of Funen, he demonstrated his musical abilities at an early age...
: Commotio, interpretation for orchestra (2000) - Franz SchubertFranz SchubertFranz Peter Schubert was an Austrian composer.Although he died at an early age, Schubert was tremendously prolific. He wrote some 600 Lieder, nine symphonies , liturgical music, operas, some incidental music, and a large body of chamber and solo piano music...
: Symphony in E (Gastein), reconstruction (2004) - Robert SchumannRobert SchumannRobert Schumann, sometimes known as Robert Alexander Schumann, was a German composer, aesthete and influential music critic. He is regarded as one of the greatest and most representative composers of the Romantic era....
: Five lieder (lyrics by Hans Christian AndersenHans Christian AndersenHans Christian Andersen was a Danish author, fairy tale writer, and poet noted for his children's stories. These include "The Steadfast Tin Soldier," "The Snow Queen," "The Little Mermaid," "Thumbelina," "The Little Match Girl," and "The Ugly Duckling."...
), version for orchestra (2005) - Franz Schubert: Der Taucher, version for orchestra (2006)
- Johannes BrahmsJohannes BrahmsJohannes Brahms was a German composer and pianist, and one of the leading musicians of the Romantic period. Born in Hamburg, Brahms spent much of his professional life in Vienna, Austria, where he was a leader of the musical scene...
: Serenade in D major, version for 10 instruments - Igor StravinskyIgor StravinskyIgor Fyodorovich Stravinsky ; 6 April 1971) was a Russian, later naturalized French, and then naturalized American composer, pianist, and conductor....
: Concertino, version for 9 instruments - Erik SatieErik SatieÉric Alfred Leslie Satie was a French composer and pianist. Satie was a colourful figure in the early 20th century Parisian avant-garde...
: Sports et divertissement, version for 7 instruments
Honors
- 1987 Hakon Børresen prize
- 1991 Carl Nielsen prize
- 1997 Edition Wilhelm Hansen prize
- 2003 Danish Academy prize