The Music of Mauricio Kagel

Mauricio Kagel was undoubtedly one of the major figures in the new music of the last fifty years. Growing up in the rich cultural atmosphere of Buenos Aires in the 1940s and '50s, he became a member of avant-garde circles as well as receiving a rigorous musical education. By 1957 Kagel moved to Europe to pursue a career as a composer and quickly established himself at Cologne, becoming one of the leading, if controversial, figures at the famous Darmstadt summer courses. He embraced multiple serialism, aleatory technique and electronics, but he is best known for his pioneering explorations in music theatre, radio play, film and mixed media.

Bjorn Heile is Lecturer in Music at the University of Sussex, UK.