“a seductive, hypnotic quality to the music”

— The Guardian on Boulez’s Dérive 2

Ensemble Intercontemporain
Matthias Pintscher, conductor
Modern Mavericks
Presented in conjunction with the Shepherd School of Music at Rice University

Schoenberg: Five Pieces for Orchestra, Op. 16 (arranged for chamber ensemble by Schoenberg)
Boulez: Dérive 2

The winners of the prestigious Polar Music Prize for 2022 makes their first-ever Texas appearance!

The legendary Ensemble intercontemporain was founded in France in 1976 by composer and director Pierre Boulez, and is dedicated to the performance contemporary music, music of the 20^th and 21^st century music. Under the direction of world-renowned conductor Matthias Pintscher, the Ensemble presents Schoenberg’s early twentieth century masterpiece, which the composer wrote “seeks to express all that swells in us subconsciously like a dream” and its co-founder Pierre Boulez’s kaleidoscopic, propulsive Dérive 2.

“a seductive, hypnotic quality to the music” — The Guardian on Boulez’s Dérive 2

“Ensemble intercontemporain is the Stradivarius of modern music and has inspired the greatest composers of our time to create new masterpieces since the 1970s…the ensemble has helped to advance the entire world of music.” – Polar Music Prize citation

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