Percussionist

Pierre Boulez catapulted himself to the forefront of music pioneers in 1955 with his chamber cantata »Le marteau sans maître« (The Hammer Without a Master). Top young talents such as Ema Nikolovska and Sean Shibe, both Elbphilharmonie FAST LANE artists, juxtapose the Boulez with works by the next generation and the generation after that as part of the Hamburg International Music Festival with the motto »Future«: »12 Caprices« by James Dillon and »Bel Canto« by Cassandra Miller, which is dedicated to the opera diva Maria Callas.

EPSG:4326

Boulez and the Young Generation

Elbphilharmonie Hamburg

In 1995, Stockhausen was asked to listen to the music of Aphex Twin, commenting that Aphex should ‘immediately stop with all these post-African repetitions’. Aphex Twin responded that Stockhausen might want to ‘stop making abstract, random patterns you can’t dance to’.

GBSR Duo: Stockhausen vs Aphex Twin

Southbank Centre

Originally written for ‘robots’ (solenoid drum machines and prepared player pianos), this transcription for live prepared pianos and percussion becomes a tightly-choreographed dance: the four musicians, freely changing roles and instruments, constantly alter the exact combination of screws, bolts and chains inside the pianos that transform them into the engines of Aphex’s acoustic techno.

Percussionist

George Barton

Events

Upcoming events

Jan 31, 2026

GBSR Duo: Stockhausen vs Aphex Twin · Southbank Centre

Jan 31, 2026

After Dark: GBSR Duo Performs Aphex Twin · Southbank Centre

Past events

May 31, 2025

Boulez and the Young Generation · Elbphilharmonie

Future and recently performed repertoire

Percussion in Kontakte by Stockhausen

Southbank Centre

Percussion in Computer Controlled Acoustic Instruments by Twin

Southbank Centre

About

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