Olga Neuwirth: double prize-winner in Austria and Germany
(April 2010)
Olga Neuwirth is awarded Grand Austrian State Prize and Louis Spohr Music Prize.On 8 April Olga Neuwirth received the Grand Austrian State Prize 2010 from the Austrian Minister for Education, Arts and Culture, Dr Claudia Schmied. The prize was awarded to Neuwirth, born in 1968 in Graz, by unanimous decision of the Austrian Senate of Arts. The declaration by the Minister states:
"Olga Neuwirth is without question one of the leading composers worldwide. Like few other artists, she crosses boundaries in several areas. She has a solid command of the visual arts, film, neuroscience and philosophy. Her music enables a journey of discovery to unknown zones of time and space. I have agreed to the proposal of the Austrian Art Senate with special joy, since this year, after Brigitte Kowanz in 2009, the highest award of the Republic of Austria in the field of art goes to a woman again. This award is not only an important public recognition for the creative work of women, but it's an important socio-political signal."
The Grand Austrian State Prize is the highest award granted annually by the Republic of Austria to an artist for outstanding achievements, with a value of 30,000 Euros. It was established in 1950 and is awarded by the Austrian Senate of Arts for an artist's life's work, without a fixed rotation between the fields of literature, music, visual art and architecture. Composers awarded in recent years include Kurt Schwertsik and HK Gruber.
As announced only a few days before the price announcement from Vienna, Olga Neuwirth has also received the Louis Spohr Music Prize of the City of Brunswick. The awards ceremony takes place on 16 May 2010 during a symphony concert in the series "New Music Celebration days" in Brunswick Town Hall; the Braunschweig State Orchestra under the musical direction of Gabriel Feltz then plays Neuwirth's new viola concerto Remnants of songs… an Amphigory with soloist Sergey Malov.
The Louis Spohr Music Prize has been awarded since 1953 by the City of Brunswick, in memory of the 1784 Brunswick-born composer Louis Spohr. Previous winners include Hans Werner Henze, Olivier Messiaen, Sofia Gubaidulina and Salvatore Sciarrino. The award underlines a commitment to the sustainability of cultural and political responsibility for future generations; it is granted to composers of international renown who demonstrate an important influence on the development of contemporary music. The prize has a value of 10,000 Euros and is awarded every three years.
In its citation the jury said: "Olga Neuwirth is considered to be one of the outstanding personalities and distinctive composers of her generation. Her works are pervaded by a deep sense of sceptical tension. She is a keen and critical observer of her environment being contaminated by mass-media. She is seeking artistic controversy and an exchange with music history as well as with media and pop culture."
For more information on the biography of Olga Neuwirth and on current performances of her works, see www.boosey.com/neuwirth.
> Further information on Work: Remnants of songs... an Amphigory
Photo: Priska Ketterer
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