Louis Andriessen

Composer Louis Andriessen was among the most celebrated Dutch masters of his generation. His writing followed trends of the 20th century, from neoclassicism through serialism and American minimalism, before establishing a sound that was his own. Dissatisfaction with the post-war European symphonic scene led Andriessen to mostly abandon the traditional orchestra in favor of mixed ensembles of electric instruments with the more conventional. To that end, he founded the ensembles Orkest de Volharding and Hoketus. Andriessen experienced a creative breakthrough in 1976 with De Staat, based on Plato's Republic. A fruitful collaboration with Peter Greenaway led to several works, including M is for Man, Music, Mozart, and Rosa: The Death of a Composer. His later works include La Commedia, an opera retelling the story of Dante's Divine Comedy, his final opera, Theatre of the World, and a song cycle dedicated to Nora Fischer titled The Only One.