Oliver Waespi, born in Zurich in 1971, studied composition as well as conducting and film music at the Hochschule für Musik und Theater Zurich and completed his studies at the Royal Academy of Music in London and in masterclasses. His tutors include Simon Bain- bridge, André Bellmont, Gerald Bennett, Sylvia Caduff, Peter Maxwell Davies, Brian Elias, Klaus Huber, Mark Kissoczy, Andreas Nick and Alfred Reed. Oliver Waespi’s music is per- formed by symphony orchestras, chamber ensembles, soloists, choirs and numerous sym- phonic wind orchestras and brass bands all around the world. Works by Oliver Waespi have been performed at the George Enescu Festival, the Gstaad Menuhin Festival, the BBC's Hear and Now concert series, Swiss National Band Conventions, WASBE World Conferences, CBDNA Conferences, European Brass Band Festivals and numerous other festivals and con- certs. In addition, he regularly conducts workshops, works as a juror and teaches at the Bern University of the Arts.
Oliver Waespi pursues a wide range of musical interests, which leads him to composition projects in various areas. This also creates references to other art forms. Works such as "Volatile Gravity" for Jojo Mayer and the Basel Sinfonietta, "Viaduct" for the BBC Philhar- monic Orchestra or "Hypercube" for the Paris Brass Band can be heard as musical interpre- tations of urban landscapes and architectures. A project for the Ensemble TaG led to the combination of music with contemporary dance. Various pieces have references to poetry, such as "Flut" for the BBC Singers, "Nachtferne" for the Berne Chamber Orchestra, "Azur" for l'art pour l'Aar, "Weisser Atem" for the Brodsky string quartet, or "Ad Astra" for the Nouvel Ensemble Contemporain.
Some of Oliver Waespi’s works are reflections on folk music and early music. These include "As If A Voice Were in Them", "Traversada" or "Audivi Media Nocte". The latter piece brought him worldwide recognition among leading ensembles and reflects Waespi's ap- proach of combining individual, groove-related rhythms with the spatiality of orchestral structures. Other examples in this line of thought are pieces such as the "Divertimento" for the Swiss Wind Band Convention, "Out of Earth" for the symphonic wind orchestra Aulos or "At the Crossroads", commissioned by the Jena Philharmonic and the Brass Band BlechKlang. Several solo concerts complete Oliver Waespi’s body of work, including concer- tos for guitar and flute, harp and piano, french horn, trombone, euphonium and tuba.
For his music, Oliver Waespi received numerous awards. These include the International George Enescu Composition Prize in 2003, the London Fellowship awarded by the Landis and Gyr Cultural Foundation in 2005/2006, a prize at the Uuno Klami Composing Competi- tion in Finland in 2009, composition grants of the Swiss Arts Council Pro Helvetia and the Dutch Eduard van Beinum Foundation, the Composition Prize of the Swiss Federation of Orchestras (EOV) in 2011, the NBA Revelli Award in the USA in 2013, the Stephan Jaeggi Prize in 2014 or the International BUMA Brass Award in the Netherlands in 2015.
Poetische Vorlage dieses Stücks bildet der Sonnengesang des heiligen Franz von Assisi. Ähnlich, wie dieses mystische Gedicht von der Sonne ausgeht und auf sie hinzielt, ist "Il Cantico" auf einer einzigen motivischen Keimzelle aufgebaut, die das ganze Stück auf vielfältige Weise durchwirkt. Ansatzweise ist die Musik auch bestimmten Elementen aus dem Gedicht nachempfunden, besonders der Erde und dem Feuer, wie auch dem Mond als Gegenpol zur Sonne.
Das Stück "Temples" wurde durch die Tempelanlage von Angkor, Kambodscha, inspiriert, wie auch durch gewisse Teile der Prediger in der Bibel. Vier Abschnitte verkörpern das Erwachen (Phnom Bakheng), den Konflikt (Bayon), die Trauer (Preah Khan) sowie den Neuaufbau (Angkor Wat). Acht Ferninstrumente sprengen das gewohnte Klangbild des sinfonischen Blasorchesters und symbolisieren überdies die Architektur des Bayon, einstiger Zentraltempel der Stadt Angkor Thom, mit seinen acht Gopuras.
Die Textvorlagen von Ovid und Marie-Luise Kaschnitz beleuchten das Thema der Sintflut aus unterschiedlichen ästhetischen Sichtweisen und Epochen heraus. Beide Textschichten führen im Stück "Flut" zunächst zu unterschiedlichem musikalischem Material und führen zu einer Art Sprachkontrapunkt und einem Verdichtungsprozess, der sich durch das ganze Stück zieht. Auf dem Wort "Meer/mare" fallen beide Texte und die Musik schliesslich zusammen.
Durata: 6' 30" Manuscritto
Weisser Atem (2006-2008)
Strumentazione: für Streichquartett
Durata: 6' 00" Manuscritto
Viaduct (2008)
Strumentazione: für Sinfonieorchester (3,3,3,3 - 4,3,3,1 - 1 Timp, 3 Perc - Str)