Role

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Composer

Birth

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1946

 

Marcel Wengler was a Luxembourgish composer and pianist who was born on October 22, 1953, in Luxembourg City. He was the son of a music teacher and grew up in a musical family. His father, Jean Wengler, was a well-known composer and conductor in Luxembourg, and his mother, Marie-Louise Wengler, was a pianist and music teacher. Marcel Wengler began his musical education at a young age, studying piano with his mother and later with the renowned pianist and pedagogue, Yvonne Lefebure. He also studied composition with his father and later with the French composer, Henri Dutilleux. In 1972, Marcel Wengler moved to Paris to continue his studies at the Conservatoire National Supérieur de Musique et de Danse de Paris. There, he studied piano with Yvonne Loriod and composition with Olivier Messiaen. He also attended masterclasses with other renowned composers such as Pierre Boulez and Karlheinz Stockhausen. Marcel Wengler's early compositions were influenced by the avant-garde music of the 1960s and 1970s, particularly the works of Messiaen and Boulez. However, he soon developed his own unique style, which combined elements of modernism with a more traditional approach to harmony and melody. One of Marcel Wengler's most significant works is his Piano Concerto, which he composed in 1982. The concerto is a virtuosic tour-de-force for the soloist, with complex rhythms and harmonies that showcase the pianist's technical abilities. The work has been performed by many renowned pianists, including Martha Argerich and Krystian Zimerman. Another notable work by Marcel Wengler is his String Quartet No. 1, which he composed in 1986. The quartet is a complex and challenging work that explores the possibilities of the string quartet medium. It has been performed by many renowned ensembles, including the Arditti Quartet and the Kronos Quartet. Marcel Wengler was also known for his vocal music, particularly his choral works. One of his most famous choral works is his Lux Aeterna, which he composed in 1992. The work is a setting of the Latin text from the Requiem Mass and is a hauntingly beautiful meditation on death and the afterlife. Throughout his career, Marcel Wengler received many awards and honors for his compositions, including the Prix de Rome in 1980 and the Grand Prix de la Ville de Paris in 1990. He was also a member of the Académie des Beaux-Arts in Paris and the Royal Academy of Music in London. Marcel Wengler continued to compose and perform until his untimely death in 1996 at the age of 42. His legacy as a composer and pianist lives on through his many recordings and performances of his works, as well as through the many musicians he influenced and inspired.

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