AWARD WINNERS’ CONCERT

Ying Wang: Dirt

for solo violin and ensembles (2019)

Elnaz Seyedi: absolute snow

for clarinet, horn and violoncello (2021)

Georgia Koumará: I wonder if I should start accessing pleasure a whole lot

for amplified ensemble and electronics (2022)

for Kollektiv3:6Koeln

Shizuyo Oka, clarinet
Deepa Goonetilleke, horn
Åsa Åkerberg, cello

Kollektiv3:6Koeln

Ensemblekollektiv Baden-Württemberg:

Pony Says

Ensemble Recherche

Ensemble Ascolta

EchtzeitEnsemble der HMDK Stuttgart

Conductor Christof M Löser

Opening remarks

Marc Gegenfurtner, Head of Cultural Affairs, City of Stuttgart

Laudatory speeches and discussions

Martina Seeber (for Ying Wang)

Editor of New Music at SWR Kultur, musicologist and member of the Composition Prize jury since 2022.

Astrid Schmeling (for Elnaz Seyedi)
Flutist, founding member of the ensemble L’ART POUR L’ART and member of the Composition Prize jury since 2025.

Luxa M. Schüttler (for Georgia Koumará)

Professor of composition at HMDK Stuttgart, composer and member of the composition prize jury since 2016.

The jury on »Dirt« by Ying Wang:
»Dirt«Schmutz by Ying Wang is a work of extremes, of eruptions and collapses, of jubilation and silence. The solo violin rolls mountains of material before it, losing itself in the omnipresent mass of sound, noise and information as well as in moments of solitude. »Dirt« is a chamber concerto, but often has an orchestral breadth, sometimes even a secret double concerto with electric guitar. This music very convincingly conveys the longing for liberation and, at the same time, the need for purification.

The jury on »absolute snow« by Elnaz Seyedi:
»The trio instrumentation that Elnaz Seyedi envisages in «absolute snow” is unusual in itself. Bass clarinet, horn and cello unfold an unconditional colourfulness and energy on the basis of a simple, almost sparse score. With just a few notes and minimal changes, Elnaz Seyedi leads us into a world that slowly unfolds before the listener, filling the space as impressively as it empties it again. Above all, however, Elnaz Seyedi shows with »absolute snow« that asceticism and richness can be one and the same.”

The jury on »I wonder if I should start accessing pleasure a whole lot« by Georgia Koumará:
The desire are at the heart of Georgia Koumará’s »I wonder if I should start accessing pleasure a whole lot«. Texts about female sexuality are skilfully embedded in a complex and energetic overall sound, which, through its immediacy, makes desire acoustically comprehensible. In her spatial composition, which is interspersed with pop music references, Georgia Koumará thus creates a unique, intense sound language that is both politically and aesthetically compelling.”