Viera Janárčeková
Slovak composer. She studied piano, harpsichord, conducting and composition at the State Conservatory in Bratislava and later at the Academy of Performing Arts in Prague in the class of Ilona Štěpánová-Kurzová and Zuzana Růžičková. She was also studying with Rudolf Firkušný at the Summer Courses in Luzern. In the ‘70s she immigrated to Germany. Since 1981 she has been living in North Hesse, working as a free composer. In 1986, 1990, 1992 and 1998 she successfully attended the International Courses for New Music in Darmstadt, primarily with György Kurtág. Her compositions are frequently broadcasted and performed at prestigious Music Festivals – Aspekte, Vom Schweigen befreit, Unerhörte Musik, Ost-West-Podium, Melos-Ethos, misomusik; in 2000, when she was invited by Gidon Kremer as Composer-in-residence to the Kammermusikfest in Lockenhaus for premiere performances of Quadratura for violoncello, Pulsator-Trio for flute, violoncello and piano, String Quartet No. 6 and Dotyk for string orchestra. After exploring different styles and varying between classical and Czech Moderne, she found her own music style during the ‘90s. This style, encompassing highly evolved universes of resonance and sound, requires new techniques of playing, notation, continuous refinement and enhancement of already existing ones. Her music is sensual, surprising, whimsical, and both technically brilliant and expressive. Janárčeková’s composition Spievanky, spievanky for voice and flute is included in sopranist Eva Šušková’s profile CD Secret VOICE (Music Fund Slovakia, 2015). The album won the ‘Album of the Year’ under Classical music category at Radio_Head Awards 2015.