Michael Hersch's music, like Robert Lowell's poetry, is described as dark, ambitious, and original, aiming to hit deep without seeking to console.
Compositional Technique
Michael Hersch's music often uses spare materials to create a grippingly visceral effect, packing expression into simple elements like isolated clusters or chords.
Performer Biography
Cellist Jay Campbell, a recipient of the Avery Fisher Career Grant, made his debut with the New York Philharmonic in 2013 and has worked with many contemporary composers.
Composition History
The work "Carrion-Miles to Purgatory" was commissioned by the Library of Congress and emerged from the composer Michael Hersch's personal experience of loss after the death of a close friend.
Performer Biography
Violinist Patricia Kopatchinskaja is known for her diverse repertoire, ranging from baroque and classical music played on gut strings to new commissions and re-interpretations of modern masterworks.
Composition History
The piece "Carrion-Miles to Purgatory" has thirteen movements, each paired with a text fragment from Robert Lowell's poetry collection "Lord Weary's Castle."
Composer Biography
Michael Hersch gained international attention at age twenty-five, winning the Concordia American Composers Awards and becoming one of the youngest recipients of a Guggenheim Fellowship in Composition.
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