21 oktober 2010

Author James Cowan and composer Richard Rijnvos talk about their cooperation in the semi-theatrical work mappamondo, based on the novel A Mapmaker’s Dream.

James Cowan, current Artist in Residence, is author of a number of internationally acclaimed books, including The Painted Shore, A Troubadour’s Testament, and Letters from a Wild State. In 1998 he was awarded the prestigious Australian Literature Society’s Gold Medal for his novel, A Mapmaker’s Dream. His work has been translated into seventeen languages. Cowan’s six-month residency on behalf of the Dutch Literature Foundation is to collaborate in the creation of a libretto with a major Dutch composer.

Richard Rijnvos is artistic advisor of the Ives Ensemble of which he was managing director from 1991 until 2000. Since October 2009 he is Head of Composition of the Music Department of Durham University. Awards include the 1989 Perspektiefprijs and the 2000 Matthijs Vermeulen Prize. His work has been commissioned by companies as renowned as the Nieuw Ensemble, the Ensemble Intercontemporain, and the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra. He regularly conducts his own work as well as that of others.