Composer

Markus Trunk

1962 –

Born 1962 in Mannheim, Germany. Studied composition in Karlsruhe (Mathias Spahlinger, Walter Zimmermann) and at Wesleyan University in Connecticut (Alvin Lucier). Received a PhD in Musical Composition from Birmingham University in 2001 (supervisor: Vic Hoyland). Co-organiser, with John Lely and Tim Parkinson, of Music we'd like to hear, a series of curated concerts of experimental music in London. Performances across all of Europe and the United States . Broadcasts by BBC Radio 3 include On a clear day for large orchestra, originally commissioned by Hessischer Rundfunk Frankfurt, in a performance by the BBC Symphony Orchestra, the rhythm mostly, but also the simple and natural words, premiered in 2006 by Apartment House, and, in 2007, the first performance of twin/double, given by Quatuor Bozzini from Montreal (a recording for Canadian radio is available online: here. Current projects include a BBC commission for Apartment House for the 2008 Huddersfield Contemporary Music Festival, and a commission from Philip Thomas for an extended solo piano piece.

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Picture credit

photo: A. Lawley and K. Lightbody

Composer statement

'Is that the way you work, you boil things down? I keep paring down and throwing things out, yes. I want to get to the phenomenon itself, so all kinds of compositional devices we have been trained to use are just a distraction. How do you approach, then, writing a piece? I would sit and wait. Think about the instruments, their timbres, their ranges? try to avoid the temptation of grand schemes. I'll usually stumble on something that gets me going, some kind of found object.' (from an interview by Tim Parkinson)

Composer quotes

'The focus is on sound itself; on utter simplicity as found in nature, and its intensive perception; on contemplation rather than action.' Thomas Kahlcke

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