Osvaldo Golijov
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Osvaldo Golijov (born in La Plata, Argentina, December 5, 1960) is a composer of classical music.
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[edit] Biography
Osvaldo Golijov (pronounced [ˈgolixof]) is musically omnivorous, as reflects his multi-cultural background. He grew up in La Plata, Argentina within a family that had come to Argentina in the 1920s from Romania and the Ukraine. As a boy, Golijov studied Yiddish. Jeremy Eichler, writing in The New York Times (Jan. 22, 2006), has noted that the "shtetl world and the Holocaust are essential parts of his cultural heritage."
Golijov's Romanian mother was a piano teacher and his Ukrainian father a physician. He was raised "surrounded by chamber classical music, Jewish liturgical and klezmer music, and the new tango of Ástor Piazzolla," according to his official website. He studied piano at the local conservatory in La Plata and studied composition with Gerardo Gandini.
In 1983 Golijov moved to Israel and studied there with Mark Kopytman at the Jerusalem Rubin Academy and "immersed himself in the colliding musical traditions" of Jerusalem.
In 1986 Golijov moved to the U.S. and earned his Ph.D. at the University of Pennsylvania, where he studied with the American composer George Crumb. He was also a fellow at Tanglewood, studying with Lukas Foss and Oliver Knussen.
Golijov has received a MacArthur Fellowship, among other awards. He has been composer-in-residence at the Spoleto USA Festival, the Los Angeles Philharmonic's Music Alive series, the Marlboro Music School and Festival, the Ravinia Festival, and several other festivals. He also is co-composer-in-residence, together with the English composer Mark-Anthony Turnage, of the Chicago Symphony.
Golijov is Associate Professor of Music at the College of the Holy Cross in Worcester, Massachusetts, where he has taught since 1991. He is also on the faculty of the Boston Conservatory. He lives with his family in Newton, Massachusetts.
[edit] Golijov's music
Golijov's music has immediate impact and communicates easily. It contains strong melodies and at other times possesses rhythmic vitality, reminiscent of Cuban samba. Golijov is a 'polystylist' — he takes styles and sounds from many different sources.
Instrumental forces are very unconventional — do not expect a normal late twentieth century symphony orchestra. Instead you get sampled sounds via a laptop computer, classical guitars and an accordion, subtle amplification, all alongside more conventional forces. The styles of singing (sometimes amplified) are also somewhat unusual (sample the St Mark Passion for a wide spectrum of styles ranging from classical soprano to the chanting of the Amazonian jungle).
In 2000 Golijov and his fellow composers Sofia Gubaidulina, Tan Dun, and Wolfgang Rihm were commissioned by the Internationale Bachakademie Stuttgart to write pieces for the Passion 2000 project in commemoration of Johann Sebastian Bach. Golijov's contribution was La Pasión según San Marcos (The Passion according to St. Mark).
He has also composed and arranged works for the Kronos Quartet and the St. Lawrence String Quartet. He frequently works with Venezuelan conductor Maria Guinand, classical and Klezmer clarinetist David Krakauer, and American soprano Dawn Upshaw, who performed premieres of his new opera, Ainadamar (and Arias and Ensembles derived from it) at the Santa Fe Opera Festival in 2005 and at London's Barbican Arts Centre in 2006. In London, these and some of Golijov's other works performed received only 2-star reviews from classical music critics although they were rapturously received by the audiences, which included many young music students and faculty from the Guildhall School of Music and Drama next door.
[edit] Discography
- Ainadamar (Deutsche Grammophon, Dawn Upshaw, Robert Spano, Atlanta Symphony Orchestra)
- Ayre (Deutsche Grammophon CD 00289 477 5414)
- La Pasión según San Marcos The Passion according to St. Mark (Hänssler Classic 98404)
- Yiddishbbuk(EMI Classics 57356-2)
- The Dreams and Prayers of Isaac the Blind (Nonesuch 79444)
- Nuevo arrangements for the Kronos Quartet (Nonesuch 79649)
- The Man Who Cried (soundtrack) (Sony Classical SK 61870)
- Caravan arrangements for the Kronos Quartet (Nonesuch 79490)
- Voices of Light Golijov songs sung by soprano Dawn Upshaw (Nonesuch 79812)
- Night Prayers Golijov's composition K'vakarat on recording of the Kronos Quartet (Nonesuch 79346)
- World to Come Golijov's composition Mariel played by cellist Maya Beiser (Koch Int'l Classics B0000CABC4)
- Goulash composition Oración Lucumí on recording by the cellist Matt Haimovitz (Oxingale)
- Anthem - Golijov's composition Omaramor on recording by cellist Matt Haimovitz (Oxingale 1238)
- Klezmer Concertos and Encores composition Rocketekya on recording of klezmer music (Naxos B0000C508L)
- Borromeo String Quartet Living Archive February 29, 2004 (CD/DVD/VHS) Golijov's compositions Yiddishbbuk and Tenebrae
- Voices of our Time - Dawn Upshaw (DVD) Golijov's composition Lúa Descolorida (TDK VTDU)
