Inspired by the mystical visions of Blake and the grim world about us, Lentz's work has a certain apocalyptic force about it, but it's not in any way negative or intimidating. Instead, he carves these great chunks of sound from the madding crowd on stage in a way that is strangely gripping and coherent. I was deeply moved. (Harriet Cunningham, The Sydney Morning Herald, 19.01.2015)

Harriet Cunningham of The Sydney Morning Herald has reviewed Wednesday night’s performance of Georges Lentz’ Jerusalem (after Blake) and Pierre Boulez’ Rituel in memoriam Bruno Maderna.

Read the full review on The Sydney Morning Herald.

Read Georges Lentz’ work introduction to Jerusalem (after Blake).

Violist Tabea Zimmermann recently published the article In defence of the viola on The Guardian:

I think the viola came into its own after the 19th century, when people were tiring of Paganini’s faster-and-faster-and-higher-and-higher pyrotechnics, and we moved into an expressionist era, when colours and nuances became more important. And yet the instrument’s capacities are still being developed today. Many composers are writing for the viola, and we need to be open-minded in finding new repertoire. (Tabea Zimmermann, The Guardian, 28 November 2014)

One of these pieces is Georges Lentz’ Monh for viola, orchestra and electronics, which was premièred in 2005 by Zimmermann and the Orchestre Philharmonique du Luxembourg. Find a [German] interview with Zimmermann on Monh on YouTube:

Georges Lentz talks about String Quartet(s).

Georges Lentz’ String Quartet(s) will be premièred on 30 November at this year’s Rainy Days Festival (28. November to 01. December) in Luxembourg.

Watch James Eccles (vla) and Oliver Miller (vc) of The NOISE in an interview with composer Lyle Chan, a recording session of String Quartet(s), a trial performance of the work at Cockatoo Island, and Andrew Wholley’s promo clip for the piece by clicking on the pictures below.

This footage was taken by Patrick Mullins and forms part of a series of documentation on Lentz’ work undertaken by Vexations 840, “a mysterious organization dedicated to classical music at its greatest”.

Happy Birthday Georges Lentz!

Find out more about the composer.

Lentz’ Birrung for 11 strings will be performed by the Bourbaki Ensemble on 27 October at the Boronia Park Uniting Church, Sydney.

Georges Lentz: Birrung
for 11 strings | 9'
vln(6), vla(2), vc(2), cb(1)
27.10.2013, Boronia Park Uniting Church, Sydney; Bourbaki Ensemble

Georges Lentz’ Birrung for 11 strings will be performed in Sydney by the Bourbaki Ensemble on 20 and 27 October at the St. Stephen's Anglican Church and at the Boronia Park Uniting Church, respectively.

View the full study score of Birrung.

Georges Lentz: Birrung
for 11 strings | 9'
vln(6), vla(2), vc(2), cb(1)
20.10.2013, St. Stephen’s Anglican Church; 27.10.2013, Boronia Park Uniting Church; Bourbaki Ensemble

The exceptional Berlin based chamber orchestra Solistenensemble Kaleidoskop will perform Georges Lentz’s Birrung on 1 August at the 68th Hitzacker Summer Music Festival.

The title Birrung (a word that comes from one of the Australian Aboriginal languages and can be translated as ‘stars’) underlines the composer’s “fascination for the vast empty spaces of the Australian landscape with its radiantly beautiful night skies” (Lentz), whereas the piece itself is a small section of Lentz’s large-scale work-in-progress ‘Mysterium’ (Caeli enarrant... VII), a cycle of works that reflects the composers interest in astronomy as well as his religious beliefs.

Georges Lentz: Birrung
for 11 strings | 9’
vln(6), vla(2), vc(2), cb(1)
1/8/2013, Hitzacker; Solistenensemble Kaleidoskop

View the full study score: