A brilliant and meticulous master of short works, constantly seeking a personal style that purifies and crystallizes a moment, György Kurtág (b. 1926) holds a special place in the musical scene. Concerned with semantics, he composes to texts by Pilinszky, Dalos, Kafka, or Beckett works that highlight the declamatory aspect of the literary work as well as the unity and comprehensibility of the text. Like his fellow countryman, Béla Bartok, he is mindful of transmission, as seen in his constantly developing Játékok (games). Kurtag also maintains an extremely rich relationship with musical history, turning towards his elders in a reinvention of material that becomes a tribute, an inspiration, and a recontextualization
