Wolfgang Rihm
Wolfgang Michael Rihm (German: [ˈvɔlfɡaŋ ˈʁiːm]; 13 March 1952 – 27 July 2024) was a German composer of modern classical music and a teacher in Karlsruhe. He was an important European composer after World War II, known for creating over 500 musical works, including several operas. Rihm gained international attention when his orchestral piece Morphonie premiered at the 1974 Donaueschingen Festival.
Bernd Alois Zimmermann
Bernd Alois Zimmermann was born on March 20, 1918, and died on August 10, 1970. He was a German composer. He is most well-known for his opera Die Soldaten, which is considered one of the most important German operas of the 20th century, following those by Berg.
Hans Werner Henze
Hans Werner Henze was born on July 1, 1926, and died on October 27, 2012. He was a German composer known for creating a wide variety of musical works. His music was influenced by many styles, including serialism, atonality, Neoclassicism, Italian music, Arabic music, jazz, and traditional German music.
Karlheinz Stockhausen
Karlheinz Stockhausen (German: [kaʁlˈhaɪnts ˈʃtɔkhaʊzn̩]; August 22, 1928 – December 5, 2007) was a German composer. Many critics consider him one of the most important and influential composers of the 20th and early 21st centuries. He is known for his important work in electronic music.
Goffredo Petrassi
Goffredo Petrassi (July 16, 1904 – March 3, 2003) was an Italian composer of modern classical music, conductor, and teacher. He is considered one of the most influential Italian composers of the 20th century.
Giacinto Scelsi
Giacinto Francesco Maria Scelsi, count d’Ayala Valva (Italian pronunciation: [dʒaˈtʃinto franˈtʃesko maˈriːa ʃˈʃɛlsi]; 8 January 1905 – 9 August 1988) was an Italian composer who also wrote surrealist poetry in French. He is best known for creating music based on a single pitch, which he changed in many ways using tiny pitch shifts, harmonic hints, and variations in sound quality and loudness. His work “Four Pieces on a Single Note” (1959) clearly shows this style.
Bruno Maderna
Bruno Maderna, who was born as Bruno Grossato, lived from April 21, 1920, to November 13, 1973. He was an Italian composer, conductor, and teacher at a university.
Luigi Nono
Luigi Nono (Italian: [luˈiːdʒi ˈnɔːno]; 29 January 1924 – 8 May 1990) was an Italian composer known for his innovative work in classical music.
Luciano Berio
Luciano Berio OMRI (October 24, 1925 – May 27, 2003) was an Italian composer known for his creative work. He is famous for his 1968 piece called Sinfonia and a series of solo musical works named Sequenza, which use unusual playing techniques on instruments. Berio was also among the first to explore electronic music.
Iannis Xenakis
Giannis Klearchou Xenakis (also known as Yannis or Iannis Xenakis; Greek: Γιάννης “Ιάννης” Κλέαρχου Ξενάκης; born May 29, 1922; died February 4, 2001) was a Romanian-born Greek-French composer, music theorist, architect, performance director, and engineer. After 1947, he left Greece and became a French citizen 18 years later. Xenakis was among the first to use mathematical models in music, such as set theory, random processes, and strategic decision-making.