Adriana Holszky

Full biography Adriana Holszky

Adriana Holszky was a Romanian-German composer and music educator who was born on June 10, 1953, in Iași, Romania. She studied composition and orchestration at the National University of Music in Bucharest, where she earned her diploma in 1977. She then went on to study at the Musikhochschule in Stuttgart and the Mozarteum University in Salzburg, Austria, where she studied with composers such as Karlheinz Stockhausen, Luigi Nono, and Helmut Lachenmann.

Holszky's work is characterized by a combination of traditional and avant-garde techniques, often incorporating elements of Romanian folk music. She is known for her use of extended techniques, unconventional sound sources, and complex rhythmic structures. Holszky composed works for a variety of ensembles, including orchestra, chamber ensembles, and vocal ensembles. Her output includes operas, ballets, and works for the stage.

Holszky's music has been performed and commissioned by numerous orchestras and ensembles around the world, including the Berlin Philharmonic, the West German Radio Symphony Orchestra, and the Vienna Symphony Orchestra. She was also an accomplished educator, teaching composition at the Mozarteum University in Salzburg and the University of Music and Performing Arts in Vienna.

Adriana Holszky passed away on March 6, 2017, in Vienna, Austria, at the age of 63. Despite her premature passing, she left behind an impressive and innovative body of work, demonstrating her unique compositional voice and uncompromising approach to music-making.