Role

:

Composer

Country

:

Serbia

Birth

:

April 7, 1963 in Novi Sad, Yugoslavia

Genre

:

Avant-Garde

 

 

Chamber

 

 

Orchestral

 

Stevan Kovacs Tickmayer is a Hungarian composer and pianist who was born on December 17, 1963, in Novi Sad, Yugoslavia (now Serbia). He grew up in a family of musicians, with his father being a composer and his mother a pianist. Tickmayer started playing the piano at a young age and showed a great interest in classical music. He studied at the Novi Sad Music Academy and later at the Franz Liszt Academy of Music in Budapest, where he received his degree in composition. Tickmayer's early works were influenced by the avant-garde and experimental music of the 20th century, particularly the works of composers such as Gyorgy Ligeti, Karlheinz Stockhausen, and Iannis Xenakis. He was also interested in jazz and rock music, and his compositions often combined elements of these genres with classical music. In the 1990s, Tickmayer moved to the United States and began collaborating with musicians from the experimental and avant-garde music scenes in New York City. He formed the group Tickmayer Formatio with saxophonist Chris Speed, bassist Skuli Sverrisson, and drummer Jim Black, and released several albums with the group, including "Gaps, Absences" (1996) and "Cognitive Dissonance" (1998). Tickmayer's compositions are known for their complex structures and unconventional use of instruments and sounds. He often uses extended techniques on traditional instruments, such as prepared piano and bowed guitar, and incorporates electronic and computer-generated sounds into his works. His music is also characterized by its use of irregular rhythms and time signatures, as well as its exploration of microtonal and non-Western scales. One of Tickmayer's most notable works is "Repetitive Selective Removal of One Protecting Group" (1997), a piece for piano and electronics that was commissioned by the Kronos Quartet. The piece features a prepared piano and a computer-generated soundtrack that includes samples of speech and other sounds. The work was praised for its innovative use of technology and its exploration of the relationship between live performance and electronic sound. Tickmayer has also composed several works for chamber ensembles and orchestras, including "Gaps, Absences II" (1998) for string quartet and "Sextet" (2001) for clarinet, violin, cello, piano, percussion, and electronics. His orchestral works include "The Fall of the House of Usher" (2002), a piece based on the Edgar Allan Poe story, and "The Madman's Diary" (2004), a setting of a short story by Lu Xun. In addition to his work as a composer, Tickmayer is also an accomplished pianist and has performed his own works as well as those of other composers. He has collaborated with musicians from a variety of genres, including jazz pianist Matthew Shipp and experimental guitarist Fred Frith. Tickmayer's music has been performed by ensembles and orchestras around the world, including the London Sinfonietta, the Ensemble Modern, and the Arditti Quartet. He has received numerous awards and honors for his work, including the Kossuth Prize, Hungary's highest cultural award, in 2010. Today, Tickmayer continues to compose and perform music that pushes the boundaries of classical and experimental music. His works are known for their complexity and innovation, and he remains a leading figure in the avant-garde music scene.

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