RIP Gyorgy Ligeti

Posted at 5:35 PM on June 12, 2006 by John Zech
Filed under: The blog

One of the 20th century's great composers died today. This is the short obit from the A-P:

VIENNA, Austria (AP) - A pioneering composer who won acclaim for
his work on the soundtrack for "2001: A Space Odyssey," has died.
Gyorgy Ligeti (LIG'-ih-tee) was 83. He is celebrated as one of
the world's leading 20th century musical pioneers. A spokeswoman
for his publisher says the composer died today in Vienna after a
long illness.
"Space Odyssey" director Stanley Kubrick also used Ligeti's
music as the theme for what turned out to be his final film, "Eyes
Wide Shut."

I remember being quite moved by hearing the St. Olaf Choir sing his "Night/Morning" in Seoul, South Korea during the Arts Festival held there just prior to the 1988 Olympics.

You can download a sample of it here.