Commission issued to Toshio Hosokawa

Les Percussions de Strasbourg, France

It all began in 1959, when Pierre Boulez was invited to conduct his work Le Visage Nuptial in Strasbourg. To form the large percussion section he needed, musicians from the Strasbourg Orchestra and the ORTF orchestra were brought together. Driven by a common innovative will and a strong friendship the six young musicians then decided to create a percussion ensemble: repertoire, choice of instruments, everything had to be invented… the “Groupe Instrumental à Percussion” was born and later became “Les Percussions de Strasbourg”. Their first concert was held at the ORTF in 1962, and soon the ensemble were to inspire the creation of a new repertoire by composers such as Messiaen, Stockhausen, Serocki, Kabeláč, Ohana, Xenakis, Mâche or Dufourt. As Pierre Boulez later remarked: “A repertoire was necessary for the Groupe, but the Groupe has made the repertoire necessary.” In 2018 the ensemble commissioned Toshio Hosokawa to write a piece for six percussionists.

November 1, 2018
WDR Funkhaus am Wallrafplatz, Cologne, Germany

Further information:
percussionsdestrasbourg.com