Biography:
The œnm . Austrian ensemble for new music has been dedicated to the performance of contemporary music for more than 40 years and has established itself internationally as one of the leading ensembles of this kind. With more than 300 world premieres since it was founded and regular participation in numerous major festivals, the Salzburg-based ensemble has become an integral part of the major concert stages.
In 1975 the composer Klaus Ager and the clarinettist Ferenc Tornai founded the œnm, in 1988 the composer and conductor Herbert Grassl took over the management of the ensemble and successfully developed it further. Johannes Kalitzke has been Principal Guest Conductor since 1997, significantly shaping the ensemble and leading it to continued success together with the cellist and artistic director Peter Sigl. In the meantime, top musicians from eleven nations are committed to the music of the 20th and 21st centuries in the œnm. Adapted to the variable needs of contemporary music, the ensemble plays in formations of 1 to 15 musicians, in exceptional cases even more.
The œnm is a regular guest at the Salzburg and Bregenz Festivals, Wien Modern, the Festival Dialoge of the International Mozarteum Foundation, the Salzburg Biennale and the Aspects Festival. The ensemble has performed at the Dresden Days of Contemporary Music, the Ultrasonic Festival Berlin, the Munich Biennale, the Bologna Festival, the Kunstfest Weimar, Milano Musica, Traiettorie Parma, Settembre Musica and the Warsaw Autumn. The ensemble is led by conductors such as Johannes Kalitzke, Peter Ruzicka, Titus Engel, Franck Ollu, Peter Rundel, Beat Furrer, Tito Ceccherini, Andrea Pestalozza, José María Sanchez-Verdú and Hideto Nomura. The œnm can look back on close collaboration with renowned composers such as Pascal Dusapin, Beat Furrer, Bernhard Gander, Sofia Gubaidulina, Toshio Hosokawa, Helmut Lachenmann, Enno Poppe, Steve Reich, Wolfgang Rihm and Salvatore Sciarrino.
In the 2008 / 09 season, the œnm created its own cycle »Saitenklang«, which gave the sound of traditional Salzburg string music a contemporary look. With this in mind, commissioned works were awarded to five composers.
Since 2011, the œnm has been offering its own concert series »œnm . quite private« in the Salzburg Künstlerhaus gives the audience the opportunity to encounter contemporary art intensively in an intimate concert atmosphere. This popular series was awarded Austria's most valuable art prize, the »Bank Austria Art Prize« 2012. The "fingerprints" series organized by the ensemble, which focuses on individual musicians from their own ranks, also offers the Salzburg audience an open window into today's international artistic events thanks to a varied program.
The musical work of œnm has also been documented on numerous video and audio media (NEOS, KAIROS, ORF and Deutsche Grammophon). The remarkable live recording by György Kurtágs Messages from the late Miss RW Trussova and Jörg Widmanns »… Darkened…« NEOS 10708 was included in the list of the best in 2007 by the German Record Critics' Award. The œnm is currently presenting its latest recording of works by the composer Alexandra Karastoyanova-Hermentin (ORF Edition Zeitton).
Ekkehard Windrich / Michaela Girardi / Izso Bajusz / Dagny Wenk-Wolff, violin
Jutas Javorka / Danka Nikolic / Elen Guloyan / Ursula Kortschak, viola
Sebestyen Ludmany / Marcus Pouget, cello
Michael Seifried / Christian Junger, double bass
Irmgard Messin, flute
Markus Sepperer, oboe
Theodor Burkali, clarinet
Michael Krenn, saxophone
Markus Hauser, Horn
Horst Hofer, trumpet
Dusan Kranjc, trombone
Katharina Teufel-Lieli, harp
Nora Skuta, piano
Albums: