| This fact
became most apparent after 1990, when, thanks to
the Schott Publishing Company
(Germany) his scores became readily available,
CD's began to be recorded and released and such
renowned musicians as violinist Gidon Kremer,
Finnish conductor Juha Kangass, cellist David
Geringas and the Hilliard Ensemble began to take
notice. A whole new world was also opened for
Vasks' music through the Bill T. Jones Dance
Troupe (U.S.) and the Netherlands Ballet Theater. Peteris
Vasks was born in Aizpute, Latvia on April 16,
1946.
The son of a minister and with its ensuing stigma
in the former Soviet Union, Vasks finally found a
safe haven for his budding talents in neighboring
Lithuania. Finishing his musical education in
1970 as a double-bass player, Vasks became a
member of the Latvian National Opera orchestra,
the Latvian Symphony Orchestra and chamber
orchestra. In 1978, after graduating the Latvian
State Conservatory's Composition Class, Vasks
began his (still ongoing) career as a pedagogue.
Many of his pupils are now noted Latvian
composers in their own right. His initial
compositional forays were noted for their
unconventionality. In utilizing the new
aleatorical approach and forging new avenues,
Vasks followed the lead of his mentors
Lutoslawski, Penderecki and Crumb. By the 1980's,
Vasks had found his unique "vocabulary"
in string, brass and piano music, consolidating
his unchanging "pro", even calling his
dramatic piano trio, "Episodi e canto
perpetuo". Through daily dramas and
conflicts, there is always a path to the eternal
and the merciful that can be found in the life's
primitive, natural order. A pastoral scene seen
from afar as constant and familiar, upon closer
visual (and aural) examination becomes live
matter with strong inner currents and gradual
vertical ascention.To understand the music of
Peteris Vasks is to understand the Latvian
language and spirit. The smallest segments in
musical language - intonation, phrasing and
accents to an all encompassing historical and
emotional experience of the Latvian people are
contained in Vasks' works, especially in
"Litene", "Latvia",
"Lauda" and "Voices"
(Balsis). Just as to understand the Estonian
vernacular through Part, the Polish vernacular
through Gorecki and the Georgian through Giya
Kancheli, all of whom Vasks considers his
contemporaries in music and soul.
Peteris Vasks is the 1996 recipient of the Vienna
Herder Award and the 1997 Latvian Grand Music
Award (Liela muzikas balva) for his Concerto for
violin "Tala Gaisma".
|
The music of Latvian
composer Peteris Vasks and each individual work is a
"message".