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Karel Goeyvaerts

Karel Goeyvaerts was born on 8 June 1923 in Antwerp, and died there on 3 February 1993. From 1943 to 1947 he studied piano, harmony, counterpoint, fugue, composition and music history at the Royal Flemish Music Conservatory in Antwerp, and went on to study at the National Conservatory in Paris, where he pursued studies in composition under Darius Milhaud and analysis with Olivier Messiaen, and where he mastered the “Ondes Martenot” with the inventor of this instrument, Maurice Martenot. It was particularly Messiaen who left a great impression on the young Goeyvaerts. The Sonata for 2 Pianos, written in 1950-51, can, for instance, be seen as a synthesis of certain of Messiaen’s ideas with Webern’s application of dodecaphony, of which Goeyvaerts made detailed analyses. This sonata was to have a major influence on the young generation of avant-gardists in general and Karlheinz Stockhausen in particular. Witness to this are the many personal and musical links between the two men, the extensive correspondence, and compositions by Stockhausen which almost literally took over the basic concept of this sonata (for instance, Kreuzspiel). In 1953, Goeyvaert and Stockhausen, together with several other composers, realised the first music produced by means of electronic generators (in the studios of the WDR in Cologne). In 1957 he temporarily withdrew from the musical world, although he continued to compose. In 1970, he was appointed by the Belgian Radio and Television (BRT) as producer at the Institute for Psycho-Acoustic and Electronic Music (IPEM) in Ghent. After several years, he became the head producer for New Music at Belgian Radio 3 (the classical channel) in Brussels. In June 1985 he was chosen Chairperson of the International Composers’ Rostrum a prestigious and active association under the auspices of the UNESCO International Music Council. Goeyvaerts was a member of the Royal Academy for Science, Letters and Fine Arts of Belgium. In 1992, he was named as first holder of the KBC Chair for New Music in the department of Musicology at the Katholieke Universiteit Leuven. This position required him to teach a course for final-year undergraduates and to write a composition. The composition Alba per Alban, which he was writing to fulfil the obligations of this position, remained unfinished at the time of the composer’s sudden death on 3 February 1993.

Selectieve bibliografie
- K. GOEYVAERTS, Das elektronische Klangmaterial, in die Reihe, 1, 1955, p. 16
- R. TOOP, Messiaen/Goeyvaerts, Fano/Stockhausen, Boulez, in Perspectives of New Music, 13, 1, 1974, p. 141-169
- H. SABBE, Het muzikale serialisme als techniek en als denkmethode, Gent, 1977
- H. SABBE, ...wie die Zeit verging..., (Musik-Konzepte, 19), Munchen, 1981
- H. SABBE, Vom Serialismus zum Minimalismus. Der Werdegang eines Manierismus. Der Fall Goeyvaerts, "Minimalist avant la lettre", in Neuland. Ansätze zur Musik der Gegenwart, ed. H. HENCK, 3, Keulen, 1982-83, p. 203-208
- K. GOEYVAERTS, Een zelfportret, Gent, 1988
- M. DELAERE (ed.),The artistic legacy of K. Goeyvaerts. A collection of essays, thematic issue of Belgisch Tijdschrift voor Muziekwetenschap, 48, 1994
- M. DELAERE, Namen werden hier zu Menschen. Zur Frühgeschichte der Darmstädter Ferienkurse. Zwei unveröffentlichte Briefe von K. Goeyvaerts, in MusikTexte. Zeitschrift für neue Musik, 54, 1994, p. 29-30
- M. DELAERE, Sonate voor 2 piano's van K. Goeyvaerts, in Muziek en Woord, mei 1994, p. 41-42
- W. VERVLOET, Transformatietechnieken in een repetitief werk: een analyse van Karel Goeyvaerts' "Pas à Pas", in Belgisch Tijdschrift voor Muziekwetenschap, thema-nummer ed. M. DELAERE, The Artistic Legacy of Karel Goeyvaerts, 48, 1994, p. 119-132
- H. SABBE, Goeyvaerts and the Beginnings of "Punctual" Serialism and Electronic Music, in Belgisch Tijdschrift voor Muziekwetenschap, thema-nummer ed. M. DELAERE, The Artistic Legacy of Karel Goeyvaerts, 48, 1994, p. 55-94
- J. LYSENS en D. von VOLBORTH-DANYS, Karel Goeyvaerts: A Chronological Survey of Works, in Belgisch Tijdschrift voor Muziekwetenschap, thema-nummer ed. M. DELAERE, The Artistic Legacy of Karel Goeyvaerts, 48, 1994, p. 15-34
- P. DECROUPET en E. UNGEHEUER, Karel Goeyvaerts und die serielle Tonbandmusik, in Belgisch Tijdschrift voor Muziekwetenschap, thema-nummer ed. M. DELAERE, The Artistic Legacy of Karel Goeyvaerts, 48, 1994, p. 95-118
- R. POLS, The Time is Near... Karel Goeyvaerts' Apocalyptic Utopia in his Opera "Aquarius", in Belgisch Tijdschrift voor Muziekwetenschap, thema-nummer ed. M. DELAERE, The Artistic Legacy of Karel Goeyvaerts, 48, 1994, p. 151-172
- D. VERSTRAETE, Staging the Ideal Society. Goeyvaerts' Conception of the Visual Aspect in "Aquarius", in Belgisch Tijdschrift voor Muziekwetenschap, thema-nummer ed. M. DELAERE, The Artistic Legacy of Karel Goeyvaerts, 48, 1994, p. 173-192
- M. DELAERE en J. D'HOE, Structural Aspects of New Tonality in Goeyvaerts' String Quartet "The Seven Seals", in Belgisch Tijdschrift voor Muziekwetenschap, thema-nummer ed. M. DELAERE, The Artistic Legacy of Karel Goeyvaerts, 48, 1994, p. 133-150
- M. DELAERE, The Projection in Time and Space of a Basic Idea Generating Structure, in Belgisch Tijdschrift voor Muziekwetenschap, thema-nummer ed. M. DELAERE,The Artistic Legacy of Karel Goeyvaerts, 48, 1994, p. 11-14
- M. DELAERE (ed.) Karel Goeyvaerts: Paris-Darmstadt 1947-1955. Excerpt from the Autobiographical Portrait, in Belgisch Tijdschrift voor Muziekwetenschap, thema-nummer ed. M. DELAERE, The Artistic Legacy of Karel Goeyvaerts, 48, 1994, p. 35-54
- M. DELAERE, Goeyvaerts-Feldman. Over sacraliteit in een geseculariseerde samenleving, in Muziek en Woord, november 1995, p. 23-26
- M. DELAERE, A Pioneer of Serial, Electronic and Minimal Music. The Belgian Composer K. Goeyvaerts, in Tempo. A Quarterly Review for New Music, 195, 1996, p. 2-5
- M. DELAERE en D. VERSTRAETE, Het Goeyvaerts-fonds in de Centrale Bibliotheek K.U.Leuven. Inleiding en Catalogus, in Musica Antiqua, 13, 1, 1996, p. 28-32
- M. DELAERE, Y. KNOCKAERT en H. SABBE, Nieuwe Muziek in Vlaanderen, Brugge (Stichting Kunstboek), 1998
- M. DELAERE, D. VERSTRAETE, E. SIMOENS en J. CHRISTIAENS, Catalogus K. Goeyvaerts-archief, New Music Research Centre K. Goeyvaerts, Universiteitsarchief K.U.Leuven, 1998, 45pp. (typoscript en website)
- M. DELAERE, Very abstract Music. Karel Goeyvaerts and the Internationalisation of New Music in Flanders, in The Low Countries. Arts and Society in Flanders and the Netherlands. A Yearbook, Rekkem, 1998, p. 294-296
- M. DELAERE, art. Karel Goeyvaerts, in I. ALLIHN (ed.), Kammermusikführer, Stuttgart-Kassel, 1998, p. 224-228
-M. DELAERE, Das Analyseseminar Olivier Messiaens und die Entwicklung der seriellen Musik, in Chr. M. SCHMIDT e.a., in Musikwissenschaft zwischen Kunst, Ästhetik und Experiment. Festschrift Helga de la Motte-Haber zum 60. Geburtstag, Würzburg, 1998, p. 89-104
- M. DELAERE, Auf der Suche nach serieller Stimmigkeit. Goeyvaerts' Weg zur Komposition Nr. 2, in O. FINNENDAHL (ed.), Die Anfänge der seriellen Musik (Kontexte. Beiträge zur zeitgenössischen Musik, 1), Hofheim (Wolke Verlag), 1998, p. 13-36
- M. DELAERE, J. LYSENS en Chr. WAUTERS, Karel Goeyvaerts' Litany V for Harpsichord and Tape or for Several Harpsichords: an Analysis, in Contemporary Music Review, 19, 4, 2000, p. 117-128
- M. DELAERE, Karel Goeyvaerts en de nieuwe muziek in België sinds 1950, in L. GRIJP e.a., Een muziekgeschiedenis der Nederlanden, Amsterdam University Press, verschijnt in 2001
- M. DELAERE, art. Karel Goeyvaerts, in S. SADIE (ed.) The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians, 2de uitg., verschijnt in 2001

©2001 Mark Delaere for Matrix and Flanders Music Information Centre
Uitgever
CeBeDeM (Brussel)

Selective discography

	Karel Goeyvaerts - Ach Golgatha (1977) 20th century Karel Goeyvaerts, Karel Goeyvaerts, Violette Beaujeant, Daniel Delmotte, André Van Belle, Yoko Nagae, Florilegium Musicum De Paris

Selectieve discografie als componist

	A tension (2022) 21st century / contemporary, 20th century Spectra Ensemble, Karel Goeyvaerts, Frederik Neyrinck, Filip Rathé, Luc Brewaeys		Karel Goeyvaerts - Pour que les fruits mûrissent cet été (2013) 20th century Karel Goeyvaerts, Florilegium Musicum De Paris
	IPEM. 50 years of electronic and electroacoustic music at the Ghent university (2013) Electro-Acoustic music Diverse uitvoerders, Louis De Meester, Lucien Goethals, Didier Gazelle, David Van De Woestijne, Stefan Beyst, Helmut Lachenmann, Boudewijn Buckinx (...)		TRIATU (2011) 20th century Triatu, Karel Goeyvaerts, Thomas Smetryns, Frans Geysen, Guo Wenjing, Živković Nebojša Jovan
	Karel Goeyvaerts - The complete Works (2006) 20th century Karel Goeyvaerts		Musica Reservata (2002) 20th century, Baroque, classicism, choir music, early music, romanticism anoniem, Paul Dombrecht, Psallentes, Josquin Desprez, Capilla Flamenca, Jacobus Clemens Non Papa, Bart Jacobs, Koen Van Assche (...)
	Tribute 2000 (2000) 20th century René Eckhardt, Karel Goeyvaerts, Tōru Takemitsu, Olivier Messiaen, Ton De Leeuw, Jos Kunst, John Cage, Tera De Marez Oyens (...)		Goeyvaerts Karel - The Serial Works (#1-7) (1998) 20th century ChampdAction, Karel Goeyvaerts, Celso Antunes
	Megadisc a catalogue (1998) classical Karel Goeyvaerts, Geert Logghe, Thierry De Mey, Peter Vermeersch, Patrick De Clerck		Nieuwe Muziek in Vlaanderen (1998) 20th century Anne Cambier, Henk Lauwers, Johan Van Cauwenberge, Ludo Mariën, Werner van Mechelen, BRTN Koor, BRTN Filharmonisch Orkest, Geoffrey Madge (...)

Author of

	Karel Goeyvaerts - Autobiografie (1983) 20ste eeuw Karel Goeyvaerts

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