A Welcome in the Hillside
ISM Annual Conference 2006
To see this Media Release as a PDF click here.
06 March 2006
The eminent composer and conductor Pierre Boulez has been honoured with the ISM’s Distinguished Musician Award for 2005.
The Distinguished Musician Award was set up in 1976, as a means by which the profession could acknowledge the outstanding contribution of a colleague to British musical life. Previous recipients have included Sir William Walton, Sir Peter Pears, Sir Adrian Boult, Janet Craxton, Jacqueline du Pre, Sir Michael Tippett, Sir Simon Rattle, Witold Lutoslawski, Sir Colin Davis, Sir David Willcocks, Sir Peter Maxwell Davies, Sir Charles Mackerras and Sir Malcolm Arnold.
The citation proposing M. Boulez for the Award said:
‘Born in 1925, Pierre Boulez studied at the Paris Conservatoire with Messiaen and privately with René Leibowitz. He first came to prominence in the 1940s with his two piano sonatas and his Livre pour quatuor for string quartet. He began to conduct in the 1950s, firstly to achieve authorative performances of his own music, but soon established himself as a conductor in his own right, with an ability to read, hear, analyse and put together performances of a standard hitherto unrealised, notably of music of the second Viennese school.
‘Chief conductor of both the BBCSO in London and the New York Philharmonic during the 1970s, he helped to revolutionise the concert life of both cities. While continuing to compose and perform his own music, he gave authoritative performances of many other new works by younger composers, many of them in London, and found time also to conduct new opera productions and to give three outstanding performances with the National Youth Orchestra. Founder and director of the Institut de Recherche et Coordination Acoustique/Musique (IRCAM) in Paris, Boulez still conducts, and has given recent acclaimed performances with the LSO.
‘Undoubtedly among the most distinguished of living musicians, the contribution of Pierre Boulez to British musical life has extended far beyond his influence on the work of our younger composers. First appearing in this country as a conductor in 1965, he joined Sir William Glock in revolutionising concert life in London and the rest of Great Britain. Appointed chief conductor of the BBCSO in 1971, he set new standards in his performances of 20th century music, and, with the orchestra, was in demand for concerts throughout the world. At the same time he was involved in oustanding new opera productions, notably Debussy’s Pelléas et Mélisande at both the Royal Opera House and Welsh National Opera. Boulez was devoted to the NYO, and conducted them on three separate occasions. He took them to Paris for a performance of Le Sacre du Printemps in its original venue at the Theatre Champs-Elysées, and they were his choice for an unforgettable performance of Schoenberg’s Gurrelieder in the Proms. Now 80 years old, he still conducts in England, giving concerts with the LSO. In 1997 he was awarded an honorary doctorate by the RCM.’
Responding to the formal invitation to accept the DMA, M. Boulez said: ‘This is an honour indeed, and I accept this award with the greatest pleasure. I can see from your list that there are not many foreigners among previous recipients. I appreciate your choice all the more!’
Ends: 03/2006
Note to Editors: The ISM, founded in 1882, is the UK’s professional body for all musicians. It promotes the art of music and upholds the honour and interests of the musical profession by protecting the interests of musicians, raising professional standards, and providing legal advice and other benefits to its 5,000 members, who include performers, teachers, composers, conductors, organists, writers and others involved in professional musical work. The ISM established its Distinguished Musician Award in 1976. The Award is a silver medallion, bearing the ISM logo and engraved on the reverse with the recipient’s name.
Contact: Neil Hoyle, Chief Executive, T. 020 7629 4413
