Gerhard Staebler received the Duisburg Musikpreis
(October 26 – November 9, 2003)

On October 26 Gerhard Staebler was awarded with the Duisburger Musikpreis. Famous artists already received this prize, among them the composers Krzyszof Penderecki and Toshio Hosokawa or the director Christof Loy. In the frame of the ceremony in Wilhelm Lehmbruck Museum (Duisburg) with a speech by Hermann Danuser, professor for musicology in Berlin, the Dutch Ives Ensemble presented Staebler´s compositions Die Reise for ensemble (2001/02) (German premiere) and Den Müllfahrern von San Francisco for seven interpreters (1989/90).
Numerous activities and concerts followed the award: a workshop by Staebler from November 3 to November 9 at Folkwanghochschule Essen, a concert withspatial ayres for soprans-solo, ensemble and tape referring to texts by Heiner Müller (1999/2000), SPICES (1) for dance, emsemble, tapes and spices (2001), INTERNET 4 (Adriatico) for piano(s) and percussion (1996-97) and O MURO for soprano, drums, metal, wood, glass and ice with four-channel tape (1992) at Folkwanghochschule in Duisburg on November 8. A day after in Wilhelm Lehmbruck Museum Duisburg NOTEBOOK for viola-solo and orchestra or ensemble (1996-2000) was be given as a world-premiere; Hideko Kobayashi played the solo-part. TRAUM 1/9/92 for saxophone (or clarinet), violoncello, piano and ensemble (1992), Den Müllfahrern von San Francisco for ensemble (1989/90) and Dalí, Música mágica para piano (1996), last work being interpreted by the pianist Bernhard Wambach, filled the concert on November 9. All ensemble-works on November 8 and November 9 were conducted by Peter Rundel.

October 26
Wilhelm Lehmbruck-Museum: Ceremony with a speech by Hermann Danuser, concert with Die Reise and Den Müllfahrern von San Francisco.

November 3 - 9
Folkwang-Hochschule Essen: Workshop

November 8
Folkwanghochschule Duisburg: concert with spatial ayres, SPICES (1), INTERNET 4 (Adriatico), O MURO

November 9
Wilhelm Lehmbruck-Museum: NOTEBOOK, TRAUM 1/9/92, Den Müllfahrern von San Francisco, Dalí, Música mágica para piano

 

Concert with Janne Rättyä in Dortmund
(October 8, 2003)

Janne Rättyä, the exceptional Finnish accordion-player, is going to perform works by Joh. Seb. Bach, Gerhard Stäbler and Kunsu Shim. Inbetween Shim´s pieces in zwei teilen a dialogue of history is created with the two poles Stäbler and Bach. The interpretation of the Goldberg-Variations transcription for accordion is one of the highlights of the concert. A German premiere of dry leaves will be another. Other pieces being presented by Rättyä are Internet 1.2. for accordion - solo, Spices (4) for accordion, tape and spices and dry leaves for accordion.

October 8: St. Petri Kirche

 

World Premiere presented by Apartment House
(October 5, 2003)

The English ensemble Apartment House directed by Anton Lukoszevieze is playing the premiere of Stäbler´s new instrumental theatre Time•Out for two female vocalists, clarinet, bassoon, cello, video and tape. Other works being given were composed by the Irish voice performer Jennifer Walshe and Valerio Sannicandro. A special service is offered by the Dresdner Zentrum für Zeitgenössische Musik. Via internet it is possible to follow the concert. www.zeitmusik.de/Veranst/Fest2003/programm.htm

October 5: Dresdner Zentrum, Festspielhaus Hellerau

 

German Premiere given by Luxembourg Sinfonietta
(September 24/25, 2003)

Gerhard Staebler´s ensemble work Plateau will be presented by the conductor Marcel Wengler and the Luxembourg Sinfonietta. Two concerts in Duisburg and Essen contain other works by Gustav Mahler, Franz Schubert, Kunsu Shim and Marcel Wengler. Plateau was commissioned by the Sinfonietta and composed on Crete in autumn 2002. The work consists of three movements, which titles ...heitere Lüfte?, ...mit trägem Fuß... and Ach, so ruhig, so licht! have been extracted from Schubert´s Einsamkeit (Winterreise). The dancers Avi Kaiser and Sergio Antonino will also take part in the concerts, which were organised by The Roof, EarPort and Stiftung Wilhelm Lehmbruck Museum Duisburg.

September 24: Wilhelm Lehmbruck Museum, Duisburg
September 25: Alte Synagoge, Essen

 

Two Hommages in Seoul with Shim and Staebler
(September 18 / 19, 2003)

After the world-premiere of the futurism - reminiscence futuressence xxx in San Francisco 2000 Staebler and Shim performed their music theatre in different places. Now the two artists were invited by the Total Art Gallery to show their extraordinary work as Korean premiere in Seoul. One day before the performance Staebler and Shim are going to present their Hommage à June Paik with pieces by Paik (Zen for Walking), Shim (beveridges), Cage (Score - 40 drawings by Thoreau), George Brecht (3 Piano Pieces, Stool, Five events, solo for xx), Henry Cowell (Tiger for piano-solo) and the composer duo Staebler / Shim (Hommage à Nam June Paik).

September 18, Total Art Gallery, Seoul: Hommage à Nam June Paik
September 19, Total Art Gallery, Seoul: futuressence^xxx

 

Koto and piano in the Eko-Haus Düsseldorf
(August 24, 2003)

"The exotic of the other" is the title of a concert being presented in the EKO-Haus der japanischen Kultur e.V. in Düsseldorf on August 24. For this occasion Stäbler and Shim wrote two pieces for Koto, which will be interpreted by Makiko Goto. Before the concert the composer Peter Gahn is going to talk about the rich tradition and the perspectives of the extraordinary zither with 13 strings. Apart from the works for Koto the pianist Martin von der Heydt is going to present works by Toshio Hosokawa (Nacht-Klänge), Peter Gahn (Mit geliehener Aussicht), Markus Bongartz, Stäbler (Internet 1.9.) and Shim (Intermezzo).

Lecture with music-examples; concert; discussion after the concert
The concert will be repeated in Tokyo on october 18 in the "Halle des deutschen Kulturzentrums (Minato-ku, Akasaka 7-5-56)". Instead of Internet 1.9. the pianist Inoue Satoko will present Windows as Japanese premiere. Keiko Hisamoto (voice) and Reiko Miyake (Koto) are going to present Ithaka.

 

New book about Gerhard Staebler´s interdisciplinarity
(August 2003)

The musicologist Hella Melkert is very familiar with Staebler´s music. She now presented her observations especially about the interdisciplinary aspects of different works being composed in the last 15 years: e.g. FallZeit, Kybele, Journal 9´1119, Dalí, Spices-series. The book contains 146 pages with numerous analyses, illustrations of scores, sketches and photos of Staebler´s scenic productions. It is published in the serie "Zwischen/Töne" (edited by Hanns-Werner Heister) and can be ordered in the net under Weidler-Verlag.

Melkert, Hella: Gerhard Staebler - Klang und Sinn, Ton und Kunst, 19,80 Euro.

 

New release with complete piano-work
(July 2003)

In the next weeks the English label Metier Records is going to release all piano-works by Gerhard Stäbler. Paulo Alvares, being involved in Stäbler´s music as soloist and conductor presents experimental, graphic notated works such as Hart auf Hart, Von Branntwein und Finsternissen and more traditional notated compositions such as Dalí or the solo-version of Traum 1.9.92.
The "release-party" will take place in the frame of a concert in Cologne. Here Alvares is going to play the premiere of Stäbler´s new piece ?! Musical essay about the limits of the possible for every kind of keyboard - mechanic or electric (also accordion). Other multimedia-pieces are presented by the string-quartet Caldron and the Ensemble for aleatoric music and improvisation.

 

Madame la Peste - Premiere in Saarbrücken
(June / July, 2003)

Staatstheater Saarbrücken will present Gerhard Stäbler´s third music-theatreMadame la Peste (2001/2002) after its world premiere in Duisburg last year. Matthias Kaiser, director and dramaturge of the opera in Saarbrücken, wrote the libretto, which is based on two novels: On Edgar Allan Poes gothic novel "The decline of house Usher" from 1839, and on the polish writer Bruno Jasienskis futuristic novel "Plague in Paris" (1928).
The music theatre is dealing with the question, if "human" systems can be installed in a society. After the plague has murdered most people in Paris, some survivors in a prison try to establish a new "socialistic" system. In the end they fail, and the question remains, if a system without ideology is possible.

Staatstheater Saarbrücken June 15, 19, 26 2003, July 11, 13, 16., Stage-production: Elmar Fulda

 

Radiofeature by Christoph Wagner
(June 18, 2003)

Different wooden mouth-organs were used in traditional Asian music. In Japan the Sho was played by virtuos interpreters, in China the Sheng became famous. Christoph Wagner is going to deal with traditional aspects but will examine the reception of these fascinating instruments in contemporary western music as well: the rock-formations Aerosmith and Cranberries and the composers John Cage or Gerhard Stäbler integrated Asian music-tradition in their works. Stäbler composed his Cassandra-study Palast des Schweigens for Sho in 1992/93 and in 1994/95 he wrote Karas.Krähen for tape, voice, sho, doublebass and drums. Mayumi Miyata recorded these works on a wonderful CD. (Wergo, Edition ZKM 282 056 - 2)

SWR 2, Juni 18 (Wednesday) 2003, 22.05

 

Russian premiere of Die Reise
(June 4, 2003)

After the world-premiere from Die Reise [The yoyage] played by the Ives-Ensemble last year Igor Dronov now conducted the ensemble-work at Tschaikowskij-conservatory in Moscow. The New Music Ensemble combined Stäbler´s work in a programme with works by Paul Dessau, Alfred Schnittke, Galina Ustvolskaya and Hans-Werner Henze (El Cimarón). The days before the successfull and well-visited concert Gerhard Stäbler gave lectures about his work at the conservatory.

 

American Premiere of Speed
(May 9, 2003)

Speed seems to be an adequate title for Stäbler´s vokal composition: with all energy, as rapid as possible, Stäbler´s asemantic syllables have to be interpreted. This heroic task is (hopefully) going to be managed by Carol Genetti, Julia Hathaway and Hollis Bolton. In the frame of Discrete Series, just founded in Chicago by the poets Zach Seldess and Kerri Sonnenberg, Stäbler´s work will be performed for the first time. Poems by Stephen Ratcliffe will be in the centre of the evening.

Chicago, "3030" (Pentecostal church, 3030 W. Cortland Ave.), May 9

 

Interzone Perceptible
(April 22 – May 5, 2003)

Duo Interzone Perceptible is concentrating on experimental works for e-bass and accordion. In April and May Sven Hermann (Accordion) and Matthias Hettmer (E-bass) are going to perform works of Stäbler (Gift.Gelb, KopfFüssler) and Shim (A silent swaying breath, Kurzschluss) in Berlin and Korea. In Berlin Shim´s new composition Kurzschluss will be presented as a world-premiere. It will be part of a concept-work by 10 composers – each composer, among them Stäbler with hisKopfFüssler – presented a short piece of 5-seconds duration.

April 22: Berlin BKA Mehringdamm: Kurzschluss (premiere), KopfFüßler, A silent swaying breath.
April 29: Kunkok University Seoul: Gift.Gelb, Kopffüssler, Kurzschluss, A silent swaying breath.
May 5, Sookmyoung University Seoul: Gift.Gelb, Kopffüssler, Kurzschluss, A silent swaying breath

 

Korean Premiere of Karas.Krähen
(March 21, 2003)

After the successful irish premiere, presented by the Crash-ensemble in November 2002, Karas.Krähen will now be interpreted in its quite unusual instrumentation with tape, voice, sho, double-bass and percussion (1994/95) in Korea. The work combines themes of Asian mythology with dangers of modern civilization. During the festival "Music today" it will have its premiere on March 21. The composer will be in Korea since he is going to take part in a jury for an international competition for composers.

 

Tour in Korea with Kunsu Shim
(March 17 – 21, 2003)

After an extensive tour in North America Stäbler and Kunsu Shim are now going to visit the east, more precisely: South-Korea. After performances in New York, San Francisco and Duisburg Futuressencexxx is presented in a new version as Korean premiere. The reminiscence to the Italian futurism is presented two times during the festival "Music today" (March 17/19, 2003). On March 18 Stäbler creates an evening, that is dedicated to one of the main figure of Fluxus, Nam June Paik. Apart from these performances Stäbler´s composition Karas.Crows for voice, sho, double-bass, percussion and tape (1994/95) will be performed on March 21. After the performances Stäbler will participate in a jury choosing the winner of the international prize composition Seoul 2003.

 

Premiere of dry leaves with Janne Rättyä in Salzburg
(March 2, 2003)

Gerhard Stäbler´s works were inspired by literature quite often: the choir-composition …for Kavafis… (2000) is a musical reflection on the vita of the Greece author Konstantin Kavafis, the music-theatre CassandraComplex (1993/94) is based on Christa Wolff´s reception of the Cassandra myth and recently Stäbler referred to the Polish writer Bruno Jasiensky in his opera Madame la Peste (2002). In dry leaves for accordion-solo Paul Auster inspired Stäbler with some of his poems collected in Disappearances. "dry leaves begins - but where?, stops, but when?" - Stäbler reflects on Auster´s thoughts about transient conditions of life. Janne Rättyä is going to perform dry leaves during the festival "Salzburger Aspekte" on March 2, 2003.

 

Radio-Programme with Hella Melkert
(February 1, 2003)

The musicologist Hella Melkert is going to present a Stäbler-portrait of 45-minutes in the programme of the German radio station Deutschlandfunk. Political and ethical questions with examples from three works will be discussed also with biographical backgrounds. Then Melkert will examine the role of divergent influences, that characterize Stäbler´s work. Especially connexes with art, literature and the reception of other composers are important here.

Saturday February 1 2003, DeutschlandFunk