Modern music composer Harrison Birtwistle has died at the age of 87. He died at his home in the southwest of England, his music publisher has said. A cause of death was not mentioned.
Birtwistle was originally a clarinetist. Later he devoted himself to writing music. His compositions have been performed by leading companies such as the Royal Opera House, the English National Opera and the BBC Proms. He wrote chamber music, but also the opera Punch and Judy and film music for The Offence met Sean Connery.
His idiosyncratic music sometimes tested the patience of the listeners, but that didn’t bother Birtwistle at all. “The accessibility of my music is not my problem,” he said. “I have an idea, which I try to express as clearly as possible. Criticism of it is the problem of others.”
His compositions sometimes had barely a recognizable melody and often had complicated rhythms. In 1995 his work Panic performed in the popular Last Night of the Proms concert on UK TV. The BBC was then inundated with complaints. “Was someone strangling a cat?” one of the viewers asked.
Although he was not one for the general public, he certainly had fans. Birtwistle has won several prizes and awards. In 1988 he was awarded a knighthood by the British Queen Elizabeth.
Here’s a snippet of Panic at the Proms concert, its critique and Birtwistle’s own commentary:
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