Theo Verbey (5 July 1959 - 13 October 2019) was a Dutch composer of contemporary
classical music whose style has been described as “energetic and appealing.” He first
achieved recognition with his orchestral arrangement of Alban Berg's Piano
Sonata op.1, a piece he orchestrated in 1984 while he was studying at the Royal
Conservatoire in The Hague. That work is still widely performed and has been
recorded twice, appearing on both the Chandos and Decca labels.
Recent activities:
Recent commissions include "After the Great War" written for Tampere Philharmonic and the Residentieorkest The Hague, “
Traurig wie der Tod
”, a
work for orchestra and chorus premiered as part of the AVROTROSVrijdagconcert
series by the Netherlands Radio Philharmonic Orchestra and the Netherlands
Radio Choir, conducted by James Gaffigan, as well as “Lumen ad Finem Cuniculi”,
written for
philharmonie zuidnederland
and conducted by Dmitri Liss. The Brodsky Quartet commissioned
Verbey to provide a segment for their celebrated song cycle, “Trees, Walls, Cities.”
Verbey composed “4 Preludes to Infinity” for The Stolz Quartet, a work which is
included on their CD, Dutch Masters and Their Inspiration. More recently, the
duo Andrea Vasi & Sebastiaan Kemner performed “Ballade”, a work for
trombone and piano written especially for them. Verbey
has
twice received commissions for new works from the celebrated Royal Concertgebouw
Orchestra, for his compositions "Alliage" and "LIED". In
the 2009-2010 season, Theo Verbey was invited to be Composer-in-residence for
the Brabant Philharmonic Orchestra's 60th anniversary season, where his piece
"Orchestral Variations" was performed to commemorate that festive
celebration.
Collaborations:
Theo Verbey was a gifted collaborator whose works are often heard beyond
the concert stage. He worked on multiple occasions with Dutch choreographer
Regina van Berkel, resulting in her ballets "Memory of a Shape" with
Ballet Mainz, and "Frozen Echo" with Ballet am Rhein. “Memory of a
Shape” will receive its Dutch premier in 2017, when it is reprised by
Introdans. In 2012, Verbey provided a new piano work, La Malinconia, for van
Berkel's ballet "Simply Marvel", a commission from the Cedar Lake
Contemporary Ballet in New York City. He has also collaborated with Klangforum
Wien on their “Free Radicals” program, providing a score for Man Ray’s 1923
film, “Retour à la Raison.” Award-winning harpist Godelieve Schrama included a
newly-commissioned work by Verbey in her performance piece, “La
harpe, c’est moi
,” and Verbey also collaborated with Orkest
Morgenstond in creating a song for school children.
Performances:
His compositions, described as “vividly imagined and rhythmically swinging”,
have been performed repeatedly by almost all major Dutch orchestras and
ensembles including: the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra, Rotterdam Philharmonic
Orchestra, the Netherlands Radio Philharmonic Orchestra, The Hague
Philharmonic, ASKO|Schönberg Ensemble, Nieuw Ensemble and Amsterdam
Sinfonietta. Conductors such as Riccardo Chailly, Jaap van Zweden, Yannick
Nézet-Séguin, Markus Stenz, Robert Spano, and Santtu-Matias Rouvali have all
conducted Verbey's works.
International ensembles and orchestras that have
performed his works include: Tampere Philharmonic, Sydney Symphony, Toronto
Symphony Orchestra, Gewandhausorchester, Beijing Symphony Orchestra, London
Sinfonietta, Ensemble Musikfabrik, Klangforum Wien, Münchener Kammerorchester,
Tanglewood New Music Ensemble, and the Esprit Orchestra Canada.
Completions
and Orchestrations:
Theo Verbey's completion of Stravinsky's 1919 version
of "Les Noces" was chosen in
2010 by Princess Beatrix to be performed at her palace in The Hague as part of
the annual "Queen's Day Concert". The performance, featuring 16
vocalists and pianola, two cembaloms, harmonium and percussion, has
subsequently been performed during the Muziekfest Berlin. Verbey’s demonstrated
respect for Alban Berg again came into play when he was asked to provide string
orchestra arrangements for the three remaining movements of the Lyric Suite,
making it possible to program the complete suite in the string orchestra
version. This version has since been performed extensively, and has been
recorded twice, appearing on the Harmony Mundi and Toccata Classics labels.
Verbey has also orchestrated three Mussorgsky song cycles (Sunless, the Nursery,
and Songs and Dances of Death), which are regularly performed. He has arranged
Scriabin’s Preludes op. 33, as well as Three Choral Preludes by J.S. Bach for
oboe, violin, viola and cello.
Educational activities:
As a composer, Theo Verbey had a strong commitment to
the education of young musicians. He taught at his alma mater, the Royal
Conservatoire of Music in The Hague, starting in 1984. In 1995, he also joined the
faculty of the Conservatorium van Amsterdam/Amsterdam University of the Arts.
Verbey was a passionate follower of current events and belonged to a reading
club devoted to keeping abreast of modern thought. Verbey was born on July 5,
1959 in Delft. His earliest musical memories involve singing nursery songs with
one of his six aunts. Later on, he started playing the recorder, and singing in
the boys’ choir of his grammar school. He began composing at the age of seven, when
he wrote small pieces for his school orchestra. During his high school years,
he also wrote some pop songs as well as music for a jazz/rock band. Verbey was married to the Dutch/American translator and
violinist Eileen Stevens.