Konus Quartett | four saxophones As a chamber music ensemble whose instrumentation changes frequently, the Konus Quartet engages its audience with highly expressive and idiosyncratic sounds. Contemporary original compositions are interpreted predominantly by the quartet, but these are also contrasted with pieces from past centuries and arrangements for saxophone instrumentation. The radical nature of its concert programmes has seen the quartet become established over the past 10+ years as an important voice for new contemporary and experimental music.
Fabio Oehrli / Christian Kobi / Jonas Tschanz / Stefan Rolli Composition commissions are awarded regularly to well-known artists by the quartet; to date such artists have included Barry Guy, Urs Peter Schneider, Tomas Korber, Phill Niblock, Makiko Nishikaze and Jürg Frey, Martin Brandlmayr, Klaus Lang. Three musical highlights serve to showcase the remarkable range of the Konus Quartet: In 2006, "La bocca, i piedi, il suono", a composition by Salvatore Sciarrino for four soloists and a hundred saxophonists, was performed in the French Church in Bern (Release 2006, Cubus Records). A collaboration with the filmmaker and composer Phill Niblock gave rise to the composition entitled "To Two Tea Roses" which was premiered in 2013 in Switzerland in the presence of the composer. The piece "Music für ein Feld" (Music for a Field) was the result of a composition commission awarded to the Zurich-based musician Tomas Korber (Release 2014, Cubus Records). www.konusquartett.ch
Fabio Oehrli / Christian Kobi / Jonas Tschanz / Stefan Rolli Composition commissions are awarded regularly to well-known artists by the quartet; to date such artists have included Barry Guy, Urs Peter Schneider, Tomas Korber, Phill Niblock, Makiko Nishikaze and Jürg Frey, Martin Brandlmayr, Klaus Lang. Three musical highlights serve to showcase the remarkable range of the Konus Quartet: In 2006, "La bocca, i piedi, il suono", a composition by Salvatore Sciarrino for four soloists and a hundred saxophonists, was performed in the French Church in Bern (Release 2006, Cubus Records). A collaboration with the filmmaker and composer Phill Niblock gave rise to the composition entitled "To Two Tea Roses" which was premiered in 2013 in Switzerland in the presence of the composer. The piece "Music für ein Feld" (Music for a Field) was the result of a composition commission awarded to the Zurich-based musician Tomas Korber (Release 2014, Cubus Records). www.konusquartett.ch
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Tomas Korber (* 1979) lives and works in Zurich. He studied psychology at the University of Zurich with a focus on methodology and computer science, holds a Master of Science degree, and wrote his master thesis on audio design and cognition. Today he works as a composer, producer and improvising musician and is mainly active in the field of experimental electroacoustic music, film music and sound design.
In addition to his work as a solo artist, he has collaborated with numerous renowned musicians, including Tetuzi Akiyama, Tim Barnes, Olivia Block, Dimitri de Perrot, Dieb13, Graham Halliwell, Jason Kahn, Hans Koch, Helmut Lemke, Lê Quan Ninh, eRikm, Sachiko M, Lionel Marchetti, Mattin, Butch Morris, Norbert Möslang, Günter Müller, Toshimaru Nakamura, Otomo Yoshihide, Gert-Jan Prins, Keith Rowe, Bernd Schurer, Yamamoto Seiichi, Claus Van Bebber, Mark Wastell, Christian Weber, Ralf Wehowsky, Stephan Wittwer, Christian Wolfarth and many more.
Tomas Korber has been involved in the production of over two dozen album releases throughout his career, has appeared at major festivals around the world and has toured Europe, the United States and Asia extensively. He was awarded the Artist in Residence Scholarship (New York) of the City of Zurich in 2009 and in 2011 received a composition commission from Pro Helvetia. www.tomaskorber.com
In addition to his work as a solo artist, he has collaborated with numerous renowned musicians, including Tetuzi Akiyama, Tim Barnes, Olivia Block, Dimitri de Perrot, Dieb13, Graham Halliwell, Jason Kahn, Hans Koch, Helmut Lemke, Lê Quan Ninh, eRikm, Sachiko M, Lionel Marchetti, Mattin, Butch Morris, Norbert Möslang, Günter Müller, Toshimaru Nakamura, Otomo Yoshihide, Gert-Jan Prins, Keith Rowe, Bernd Schurer, Yamamoto Seiichi, Claus Van Bebber, Mark Wastell, Christian Weber, Ralf Wehowsky, Stephan Wittwer, Christian Wolfarth and many more.
Tomas Korber has been involved in the production of over two dozen album releases throughout his career, has appeared at major festivals around the world and has toured Europe, the United States and Asia extensively. He was awarded the Artist in Residence Scholarship (New York) of the City of Zurich in 2009 and in 2011 received a composition commission from Pro Helvetia. www.tomaskorber.com