Violeta Dinescu

Violeta Dinescu (born 13 July 1953) is a Romanian composer, pianist, and academic teacher, living in Germany since 1982. She has been professor of applied composition at the University of Oldenburg from 1986.

Romania

Born in Bucharest on 13 July 1953, Dinescu began her studies of music in 1972 at the Ciprian Porumbescu Conservatory in Bucharest, composition with Myriam Marbe. In 1978 she received her master's degree with distinction. She also received diplomas in the fields of Composition, Piano and Pedagogics. She started teaching at the George Enescu Music School in Bucharest, conducting courses in Music history, Aesthetics, Counterpoint, Harmony and Piano. In 1980 she joined the Romanian Composers Union.

Germany, operas In 1982, she moved to West Germany. Her first opera, Hunger und Durst after Eugène Ionesco, was premiered in Freiburg in 1986. Der 35. Mai (The 35th of May, or Conrad's Ride to the South Seas), a children's opera after Erich Kästner was composed in 1986, The operas have been performed at leading opera houses, as Der 35. Mai at the Staatsoper Hamburg in 2004. She worked for the Austrian theatre ARBOS on two music theatre projects, "The Singing of The Fools About Europe" and "The Concert of Birds". Herzriss, an opera in nuce for voice and percussion after Homer, Ionesco, and Márquez, premiered in 2005.

Teaching Since 1986, she has been teaching at German music academies in Heidelberg, Frankfurt, Bayreuth, and since 1996 as a professor of Applied Composition at the University of Oldenburg.

Dinescu has been an executive board member of the International Alliance of Women in Music since 1987. Her works were published by Verlag Dohr and Schott Music, among others.

Work The prolific composer of orchestral music, chamber music, choral and vocal music received many international prizes and awards. Major commissioned works include Akrostichon and L‘ORA X for orchestra, an oratorio for Pentecost, Pfingstoratorium, music for the F. W. Murnau silent film Tabu and the ballets Der Kreisel and Effi Briest.

Her works include: Akanua, piano, 1974 Sonata, violin or viola, piano, 1975 In meinem Garten, text by Ana Blandiana, children’s chorus, 1980 Mondnächte, text by Joseph von Eichendorff, mezzo-soprano, saxophone, percussion, 1986 Akrostichon, orchestra, 1983 Der Kreisel, ballet, scenario after Eduard Mörike, orchestra, 1985 Hunger und Durst, chamber opera, libretto by the composer after Ionesco, small orchestra (14 players), 1985 Concerto, voice, orchestra, 1986 Quatrain, text by François Villon, female voice, 1986 Dona nobis pacem, mezzo-soprano, cello (+ percussion), 1987 Tabu, film score for silent movie, small orchestra, 1988 ICHTHYS, violin, cello, piano, 1991 Der 35 Mai, children’s opera, libretto by the composer after Kästner, 3 soloists, 8 mixed voices, children’s chorus, orchestra, 1986 Eréndira, chamber opera, libretto by the composer after Márquez, 7 soloists, small orchestra, 1992 Pfingstoratorium, 5 soloists, mixed chorus, small orchestra, 1993 Schachnovelle, chamber opera, libretto by the composer after Stefan Zweig, 3 soloists, chamber ensemble, 1994 L'ORA X, orchestra, 1995 Self-Reflections I/II, piano, live electronics, 1996–97 Effi Briest, ballet, scenario after Theodor Fontane, orchestra, 1998 Vortex – Wolken I, II und III, small orchestra, 1998 Licht-Bruch, accordion, 2001 Rugá, clarinet, double bass, accordion, 2001 Herzriss, opera in nuce, female voice and percussion, 2005