News

NYRB Review: ‘the loser’

September 14, 2016

Francine Prose9/13/2016 The Loser, David Lang’s beautiful and startlingly original opera, had its world premiere this month at the Brooklyn Academy of Music. Composed for a solo baritone, a chamber ensemble, and a concert pianist, the opera (Lang not only wrote the music but is also responsible for the libretto and the stage direction) has been adapted from the Thomas Bernhard novel of the same name—a book which, since its publication in 1983, has attracted an almost cultish following…

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‘the loser’ New York Times review

September 10, 2016

click to read the NYT review

“…the score is a model of how music can animate words. The text is set with impressive clarity, and Mr. Gilfry sings every phrase with crisp diction and dramatic point, delivering phrases with virile energy, sudden bluster, or, during vulnerable moments, an aching confusion that takes you by surprise.”
— Anthony Tommasini, The New York Times

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‘the loser’ premieres at Brooklyn Academy of Music

August 22, 2016

the loser September 7-11, 2016. Brooklyn Academy of Music. Gilman Opera House.

He appears to float in the nothingness. Confined to a tall tower 20 feet above the seats, he is alone, broken, and has a story to tell.

In this daringly staged one-act opera from Pulitzer Prize-winning composer David Lang—featuring mezzanine-only seating and based on the novel by Austrian writer Thomas Bernhard—a failed piano student (baritone Rod Gilfry, Anna Nicole, 2013 Next Wave) recounts a life lived in the shadows of his famous friend Glenn Gould…

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‘the public domain’ at Mostly Mozart Festival

July 22, 2016

On August 13, The Mostly Mozart Festival at Lincoln Center gives the world premiere of David Lang’s the public domain — a performance that not only welcomes the public as a free and open event, but will also be performed by the public. A piece inspired by the theme of the collective knowledge shared amongst us all, the new work is performed by 1,000 volunteer vocalists from throughout New York City, conducted by Simon Halsey, Choral Director of the London Symphony Orchestra…

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Simple Song #3 nominated for a 2016 Academy Award

January 14, 2016

David Lang’s Simple Song #3, written as part of the score for the film Youth by Paolo Sorrentino, has been nominated for a 2016 Oscar for Best Original Song.

http://oscar.go.com/nominees

Lang’s score for Youth represents the compositions written by the film’s protaganist (a classical composer and conductor toward the end of his career) and most importantly his Simple Song #3, an integral and recurring musical and cinematic theme…

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Simple Song #3 nominated for Golden Globe

December 16, 2015

watch a featurette on Lang’s music in Youth.

David Lang’s Simple Song #3, written for Paolo Sorrentino’s film Youth, has been nominated for a 2016 Golden Globe for Best Original Song.

Lang’s score for Youth represents the compositions written by the film’s protaganist (a classical composer and conductor toward the end of his career) and most importantly his Simple Song #3, an integral and recurring musical and cinematic theme…

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Lang composes score and original song for Sorrentino’s Youth, in US theaters 12/4

December 4, 2015

On Friday December 4, Paolo Sorrentino’s film Youth — with score and original song composed by David Lang — is released throughout North America; the soundtrack to the film is released digitally on iTunes.

Click here to qread a New York Times feature on Lang’s music in the film.

Click here to listen to an NPR interview with Lang and All Things Considered‘s Robert Siegel…

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