Klaas de Vries
(Terneuzen, 1944) studied piano and composition at the Rotterdam Conservatory and continued his study in composition under Otto Ketting at the Royal Conservatory in The Hague. After winning an award for composition in 1994 he studied for some time with Milko Kelemen in Germany. He was programmer of the STAMP concerts in Rotterdam and taught theoretical subjects at Twente Conservatory. With Peter-Jan Wagemans he started the foundation the Unanswered Question, realizing performances of new work by the composition department. Works by De Vries have been performed by the Rotterdam Philarmonisch Orkest, the Residentieorkest, the Noordhollands Philharmonisch Orkest, the Schönberg Ensemble and the Nederlands Saxofoonkwartet. In 1984 Klaas de Vries received the 1983 Matthijs-Vermeulen award for his composition Discantus, written for the Nederlands Studenten Orkest. In 1998 he received this prize a second time for A king, riding and Interludium for string orchestra.
Share this page
Archive available for: Klaas de Vries
-
In search of the soul. Part 3: Art
If there is one occupational group tackling its own spiritual welfare then is is the artists' guild. Are the eyes the mirror of the soul? Is the soul paramount? What benefits the soul the most, the world or an Elysian island? What would Achterberg have meant with 'And in an eternal whirling loss/of flower and sun and horizon/thy quiet soul's horizons rose/blue all round the heart'? What purpose is a similarly high-flown ideal to a writer, a visual artist or a composer? Writer Allard Schröder, visual artist Theo Jansen and composer Klaas de Vries were in search of the enchantment or disenchantment of art. Dutch spoken.
