The Hague (Netherlands), May 19, 2023 – Jubelhemd (2021) for trumpet, percussion, harp, viola and orchestra by Swedish composer Lisa Streich (b. 1985), Nuits (2022) for chamber ensemble by French composer Othman Louati (b. 1988) and The Card Players (Kvartopirci) (2018) for string orchestra by young Slovenian composer Matic Romih (b. 1996) are the works selected by radio music producers participating in the 69th International Rostrum of Composers (IRC) held in The Hague (Netherlands), from 16 to 19 May 2023.

A flagship programme of the International Music Council, the IRC took place for the second time in its history in the Netherlands at the invitation of NPO Klassiek and the Royal Conservatoire in The Hague.

Pursuing its mission to promote contemporary music creation through broadcasting for almost seventy years, the annual Rostrum has this year again strengthened its role as one of the most important “rendez-vous” for professional exchange between radio producers. Its overall objective remains fostering the exchange of performances of contemporary music between broadcasting organisations. Works chosen at the preceding Rostrum (2022) were given some 600 broadcasts by participating networks as well as affiliates of the European Broadcasting Union (EBU).

The 2023 Rostrum gathered representatives from 22 national radio networks from four continents, which presented 41 works composed within the five years preceding the Rostrum. For the first time in its history, the majority of the presented composers were female or non-binary.
Evert van Berkel, recording producer and coordinator for P2 live at the Swedish Radio, chaired the sessions. After the listening sessions, the assembly of delegates selected and recommended the most distinctive works in two categories: general and “young composers under 30”.

In the general category, two works were selected ex aequo by the delegates as most outstanding: Jubelhemd (2021) by Swedish composer Lisa Streich (b. 1985) presented by Swedish Radio and Nuits (2022) by French composer Othman Louati (b. 1988) presented by Radio France.

Lisa Streich describes Jubelhemd as “a piece that conceptually deals with two 20th-century visual art works. One is Jubelhemd by Markus Schinwald, the other Perfect Tomato by Sally Mann. Jubelhemd shows a specially constructed shirt where the wearer only can wear it with arms extended upwards in a jubilant gesture. Perfect Tomato is a photograph that has the tomato in focus, but what really catches the viewer’s attention is a child with arms outstretched, appearing angelic due to the blur here. The piece is about three aspects: Firstly, the forced jubilation – the piece was written for the Swedish Royal Academy of Music’s 250th anniversary.

Nuits by French composer Othman Louati “is a piece that seeks the light at the bottom of the well. Obsessed with a simple and immediately apprehended material – the third – this piece opens five windows in which sounds in the grip of light and shade are confronted.

In the “young composers” category, the work selected as most worthy for worldwide broadcasting was The Card Players (Kvartopirci) for string orchestra (2018) by young Slovenian composer Matic Romih (b. 1996). The composition was presented by RTV Slovenia, Radio Slovenia 3 – Programme ARS.

The Card Players (Kvartopirci) is a painting by the Baroque painter Almanach in which a group of men is seen at playing cards and rejoicing. The composer tried to express these motives through music. The main motive is passed from one group of musicians to another, each positioned in a different part of the hall. They interrupt each other, steal each other’s themes or chatter over each other, as seen in the painting, thus illustrating the merry company of card players. The piece was written on behalf of The Slovenian Philharmonic String Chamber Orchestra for the series “Harmony of the Spheres – Pictures at an Exhibition” in cooperation with the Academy of Music in Ljubljana and has been performed in the National Gallery where Almanach’s painting is exhibited.

In addition to the selected works, 13 other works (see list further) were recommended for broadcasting and concert presentation after the Rostrum by the participating and other interested radio stations.

The results of this year’s Rostrum were announced at a press conference held at Amare on 19 May 2023. The press conference was also the occasion to present the new cooperation between the International Music Council and Norrlandsoperan (Sweden), thanks to which Lisa Streich (the selected composer in the General Category with the highest individual points) will benefit from a co- commission for the Norrlandoperan Symphony Orchestra.

Matic Romih, the selected composer in the under-30 category, will receive the IRC Prize in the form of a bursary offered by IMC and supported by RTP–Radio Television Portugal/Antena 2.

Moreover, a new partnership with the prestigious Vienna-based publishing firm Universal Edition will allow the three selected composers free of charge access for one year to the UE SCODO publishing service while all recommended composers will be entitled to a free one-time evaluation for inclusion in the service and a special rate if they decide to subscribe.

During their stay in The Hague, Rostrum delegates had the possibility to experience the broad spectrum of the local contemporary music scene including a rich exchange with two laureates of previous Rostrum editions, Yannis Kyriakides and Jan-Peter de Graaff.

Delegates attended an outstanding performance of works by young composers and performers studying at Royal Conservatoire in The Hague.

Gregor Pirs, Head of Music at Radio Slovenia 3 – Ars Programme, was elected for a 3-year mandate as new chair of the Rostrum and will lead the preparations for its 70th anniversary edition in 2024. Outgoing chair Evert van Berkel, producer Swedish Radio Ltd, thanked all participating radios as well as the International Music Council for their engagement in promoting and supporting contemporary music.

GENERAL CATEGORY SELECTED WORKS (ex aequo)

Lisa STREICH (Sweden) JUBELHEMD

Othman LOUATI (France) NUITS

RECOMMENDED WORKS (in alphabetical order of composer)

Asia Ahmetjanova (Switzerland)         Après le chant
Wilbert Bulsink (Netherlands)             Smashing Mirrors
Angélica Castelló (Austria)                    Star Washers
Sofia Jernberg (Switzerland)                ዐይነ-እርግብ (Ahmaric)
Albertas Navickas (Lithuania)             Out of the Rolling Ocean the Crowd
Teoniki Rożynek (Poland)                     shift
Sander Saarmets (Estonia)                   and the sky turned yellow
Larisa Vrhunc (Slovenia)                      So Quiet
Mioko Yokoyama (Finland)                  Talking Metals, Talking Drums

COMPOSERS UNDER 30 CATEGORY SELECTED WORK

Matic Romih (Slovenia) THE CARD PLAYERS (KVARTOPIRCI)

RECOMMENDED WORKS (in alphabetical order of composer)

Marta Domingues (Portugal)                        Aspen Tree
Predrag Radisavljević (Serbia)                     Schizophrenia
Tara Jovana Valkonen (Finland)                 La Musique Comprend-elle le Compositeur? 
Rick van Veldhuizen (Netherlands)           mais le corps taché d’ombres