• Home
• Sounds
• Brucknerfest
• Monthly Magazine
• Guest Book
• Galleries

Thomas Pernes

Artist in Residence 2005-06 and 2006-07

Born in 1956 in Vienna

Studied piano with Bruno Seidlhofer, composition with Roman Haubenstock-Ramati.

The premiere of his 1st String Quartet in Vienna’s Konzerthaus in 1976 marked the beginning of his career in New Music. There followed over the coming years performances at and commissions from venues, festivals and concert organizers including Donaueschinger Musiktage, IGNM World Music Festival in Jerusalem, Daiichiseimei Hall in Tokio, IRCAM in Paris, Kennedy Center of the Performing Arts in Washington, Pan Music Festival in Seoul, Alte Oper Frankfurt, Europäisches Musikfest Stuttgart, Holland Festival in Amsterdam, the Venice Biennale, Musikprotokolle at Steirischer Herbst, Wiener Staatsoper, Brucknerfest Linz, Ars Electronica, Wiener Festwochen and the Wiener Musikverein. Back in the early ‘80s, and thus before the term “crossover” had even been coined, Thomas Pernes had already begun to expand the realm of classic avant-garde by integrating folk music and jazz elements into his works as well as by utilizing electronics as a means of enhancing the compositional possibilities available to him. In the ‘90s, he went on to develop his own form of music theater that he termed Klangtheater (literally tone-theater); instead of a conventional narrative or plot, this form of artistic expression depicts human conditions and states, feelings and associations in a dramaturgy put forth via music. For Vienna’s Mozart Year 2006, Thomas Pernes created a new adaptation of “The Magic Flute.”

He was commissioned to compose the music for the opening ceremonies of the 2005 Brucknerfest (“Helios”).

Thomas Pernes in the Brucknerhaus:

April 19, 2006, Premiere of “Herrn Johann’s Affären” - ein kurzer Auszug aus dem Register // Oktavian Ensemble (Harmoniemusik Linz)