About
Michael Ostrzyga has gained international reputation as a composer of choral music in particular, being commissioned by festivals like the Schleswig Holstein Musik Festival and renowned performers around the globe like the Finnish YL Male Voice Choir (Ylioppilaskunnan Laulajat), the Vienna Chamber Choir, latvian Youth Choir „Kamēr…“, via-nova-chor Munich, the Harvard Summer Chorus, and Chamber Choir Consono.
Albert Einstein
Short Biography
Michael Ostrzyga, composer, conductor and music theorist, known in particular for his choral music, was commissioned by the Schleswig Holstein Musik Festival, the World Symposion on Choral Music (2020 in Auckland, NZ), as well as performers around the globe like Finnish YL Male Voice Choir (Ylioppilaskunnan Laulajat), Latvian Youth Choir „Kamēr…“, and Kammerchor Stuttgart, among others. Performers include the Raschèr Saxophone Quartet, Jeaner Philharmonic Orchestra, Boston Modern Orchestra Project, Concerto Köln, New Dublin Voices, Australian Chamber Choir, CHORWERK RUHR and MDR-Rundfunkchor. In recent years, extensive analytical and style comparative studies of Mozart’s musical language lead to his completion of Mozart’s Requiem, merging essentially artistic practice and, for the first time, historically informed music theory to be released by acclaimed publishing house Barenreiter.
Besides, he serves as Music Director at University of Cologne, where he currently leads the Collegium Musicum, an organization housing the university’s major musical ensembles and conducts Choirs and Orchestras. As a guest conductor, he collaborated with ensembles like Boston Modern Orchestra Projekt, Bochumer Symphoniker, Neue Philharmonie Westfalen, Musikfabrik, Alabany Consort, and Kölner Vokalsolisten and appeared in festivals like Acht Brücken. He has also regularly commissioned and premiered numerous new works by composers such as Martin Herchenröder, Friedrich Jaecker, Jan Masanetz and Anno Schreier.
Long Biography
Composer, Conductor, and music theorist Michael Ostrzyga has gained international reputation for his choral music in particular, being commissioned by Schleswig Holstein Musik Festival, World Symposion on Choral Music (2020 in Auckland, NZ), as well as performers around the globe like Finnish YL Male Voice Choir (Ylioppilaskunnan Laulajat), Vienna Chamber Choir, Latvian Youth Choir „Kamēr…“, via-nova-chor Munich, Kammerchor Stuttgart, and Chamber Choir Consono, among others.
His works are performed by ensembles like Rheinisches Klavierduo, Raschèr Saxophone Quartet, Neues Rheinisches Kammerorchester, Jeaner Philharmonic Orchestra, Boston Modern Orchestra Project, Concerto Köln, New Dublin Voices, Australian Chamber Choir, Swedish choirs Kammarkören Pro Musica, Allmänna Sången and S:t Jacobs Vokalensemble, Chorwerk Ruhr and MDR-Rundfunkchor. His full-length Oratorio „Puer natus est“, Libretto by Winfried Böhm, was hailed as „resounding success“ by Bavarian Broadcasting. In recent years, extensive analytical and style comparative studies of Mozart’s musical language lead to a completion of Mozart’s Requiem fragment merging essentially artistic practice with, for the first time, historically informed music theory.
As a guest conductor, he collaborated with ensembles like Boston Modern Orchestra Projekt, Bochumer Symphoniker, Neue Philharmonie Westfalen, Musikfabrik, Neues Rheinisches Kammerorchester, The Albany Consort, and Kölner Vokalsolisten and appeared in festivals like Acht Brücken. As a formerly active pianist, he co-founded the chamber music ensemble Sforzato presenting extraordinary concerts combining music of all eras and genres. Throughout all of these various positions, he has regularly commissioned and premiered numerous new works by composers such as Michael Gees, Martin Herchenröder, Friedrich Jaecker, Jan Masanetz, Anno Schreier, and Gerhard Stäbler.
Ostrzyga was born in Castrop-Rauxel, North Rhine-Westphalia in Germany, where he was initially trained in piano, organ, and choral duties by Bruno Zaremba before studying conducting with renowned conductor Marcus Creed, music theory with Friedrich Jaecker, and piano with Peter Degenhardt.
German Biography
Michael Ostrzyga, Dirigent, Komponist und Musiktheoretiker, ist international bekannt vor allem für seine Chormusik. Kompositionsaufträge erhielt er u.a. vom Schleswig-Holstein Musik Festival, 12. World Symposion on Choral Music 2020 (Neuseeland), der Freiburger und Kölner Dommusik, dem YL Male Voice Choir (Finnland), „Kamer…“ (Lettland) und dem Kammerchor Stuttgart. Zu Interpretierende zählen das Raschèr Saxophon Quartet, die Jenaer Philharmonie, das Rheinische Klavierduo, Concerto Köln, der MDR-Rundfunkchor, Chorwerk Ruhr, Kammarkören Pro Musica, Allmänna Sången, New Dublin Voices und der Australian Chamber Choir. Früher als Pianist und Organist aktiv, hat er das Kammerensemble sforzato mitbegründet.
2008 wurde er zum Universitätsmusikdirektor der Universität zu Köln und Leiter des Collegium musicum berufen. Hier dirigiert er Orchester, Chor, Kammerchor und Kammerorchester. Als Gast dirigierte er u.a. die Bochumer Sinfoniker, die Neue Philharmonie Westfalen, das Boston Modern Orchestra Project, die Musikfabrik, das Albany Consort und die Kölner Vokalsolisten. Chor-Einstudierungen machte er u.a. für Pablo Heras-Casado (mit ensemble intercontemporain), Duncan Ward (mit Ensemble modern) und François-Xavier Roth (Gürzenich Orchester Köln). Beim renommierten ACHT BRÜCKEN Festival hat er in den letzten Jahren mehrfach mitgewirkt und Vokalwerke Ligetis und Morton Feldmans „Rothko Chapel“ dirigiert.
Ostrzyga hat in seinen verschiedenen Positionen viele neue Werke in Auftrag gegeben, einstudiert und/oder uraufgeführt, u.a. von Manfred Trojahn, Gerhard Stäbler, Michael Gees, Jan Masanetz und Anno Schreier. Sein abendfüllendes Weihnachtsoratorium „Puer natus est“ (2017) mit Libretto von Winfried Bohm beschrieb der BR als „durchschlagender Erfolg“. Kompositionen sind bei Breitkopf & Härtel, Carus und Helbling verlegt. In den letzten Jahren hat er sich intensiv mit der Tonsprache Mozarts auseinandergesetzt und erarbeite nach umfassenden analytischen und stilkomparativen Studien eine Ergänzung von Mozarts Requiem-Fragment die vor allem die Perspektive künstlerischer Praxis und erstmals historisch informierter Musiktheorie zusammenbringt, und im Bärenreiter-Verlag erscheinen wird.
Seine erste musikalische Ausbildung (Orgel, Klavier, Chor) erhielt er von Bruno Zaremba, bevor er in Köln bei Marcus Creed (Dirigieren), Friedrich Jaecker (Tonsatz) und Peter Degenhardt (Klavier) studierte und 2005 abschloss.
Upcoming projects
Currently I am putting the final touches to works I was able to pursue more extensively due to the pandemic:
„I am sorry I ever took it. (the rock)“ – Conscience Letters from the Petrified Forrest for Baritone (Thomas Bonni) and Piano (Christoph Schnackertz) will be the first of a group of cycles called „Conscience Pile“.
„thirty miles from nowhere“ for singer alone.
Due to the pandemic all premieres and concerts slated have been cancelled, some are delayed:
THE SILENT CITY (finished), commissioned by Musikpodium Stuttgart for Kammerchor Stuttgart directed by Frieder Bernius (cappella work for 24 part chorus and overtone soloist Anna-Maria Hefele), was to be performed in Stuttgart, Singapur and New Zealand (World Symposium of Choral Music) in July 2020 but is cancelled as of now.
Commissions
Mariposa (eventually a three-movement-work for chorus a cappella with texts by Homero Aridjis for chamber choir Consono conducted by Harald Jers – first movement premiered in 2019) – world premiere of movement two and three was originally coming up in second half of 2020, but moved to 2021.
New work for brass quintet commissioned by Navus Brass for 2020/2021 seasons.Performing