Frank Nuyts

Frank Nuyts

Frank Nuyts was born in Ostend (Belgium) in 1957. He studied percussion, chamber music and piano in the Royal Conservatory of Music in Ghent as well as composition with Lucien Goethals and Karel Goeyvaerts at IPEM (Institute of Psychoacoustics and Electronic Music).

His first compositions are written in post-serial style. He wins the first prize in the national competition “Tenuto” of the Belgian Radio and Television (now VRT) with the orchestral piece “As if the hand never leaves” from 1979. “Sonivers II: Inmediaciones de la noche”, a cantata for soprano, reciter, flute, chamber orchestra and tape was selected by the Belgian Radio and Television for the Italia Prize in 1982.

Around 1985 he is stilistically veering to post-modernism: elements of the so-called “commercial music” are from then on imbedded in compositions which remain multi-layered although rhythmically less complex. “Rastapasta” (1986) for flute and solo strings and “Woodnotes” (1987) for marimba and orchestra for the American virtuouso Robert Van Sice

In 1989 he founds with Iris De Blaere Hardscore, a group seeking to establish the right instrumental sound for the new style. The group consists of electronic keyboards, amplified marimba, saxes, voice, electronic bass and drums. Six Books are currently composed for and recorded with this ensemble. Several times, Hardscore is linked to other ensembles, as for instance in 1991 with “When the tombs of brass are spent..." for large brass ensemble, conducted by Dirk Brossé.

In 1990 he wins “Le prix de la musique contemporaine de Québec” for his chamber music output and the Belgian “Muizelhuis composition prize”. In the nineties he writes a Second and Third symphony, a chamber opera (“Ga.n”, scored for an all electronic orchestra), and many pieces for chamber ensembles. The Australian vocal ensemble “The Songcompany” commissions a work for six solo voices “Airs à gogo” which is premiered during the Brisbane Music Festival in 1994. In 1995 he receives the 5-yearly Prize for Music of his hometown Ghent.

In the same year he writes “Hard Scores for orchestra” for marimba, vibraphone, piano and large orchestra, premiered and recorded in the Brussels Palais des Beaux-Arts. In 1997, 1998 and 2000 he releases 3 CD's with Hardscore In 1998 he is composer in residence of I Fiamminghi (Belgium) . He composes Hard Scores Book 5 “Surf, wind and desire” for De Werf in Bruges (1999) and Book 6 “Monkey trial” in (2000) for the Festival of Flanders. Writes in 2002 three large sonatas for piano, which are premiered by three fabulous young pianists choreographed by Eddy Becquart in an ancient mining site in Houthalen (Belgium).

From 2002 on he composes almost exclusively for the Brussels theater company “Ensemble Leporello”, while still continuing to teach composition at the Royal Music Conservatory of Ghent.

Go to his personal homepage.