Pousseur, Henri

Pousseur, Henri

(äNrē` po͞osör`), 1929–2009, Belgian composer, b. Malmédy. Considered the leader of the Belgian avant-garde, he studied composition with André Souris and Pierre BoulezBoulez, Pierre
, 1925–2016, French conductor and composer of modernist classical music. He studied at the Paris Conservatory with Olivier Messiaen (1944–45) and studied twelve-tone technique with René Leibowitz (1946).
..... Click the link for more information.
 and worked with Karlheinz StockhausenStockhausen, Karlheinz
, 1928–2007, German composer, music theorist, and teacher; his first name also appears as Karl Heinz. He studied composition with Frank Martin in Cologne (1950–51) and with Olivier Messiaen and Darius Milhaud in Paris (1951–53).
..... Click the link for more information.
, Luciano BerioBerio, Luciano
, 1925–2003, Italian composer, b. Oneglia. After studying at the Milan Conservatory and working as a coach and conductor in Italian opera houses, Berio was introduced in 1952 to serial music by Luigi Dallapiccola, and a nondoctrinaire serialism subsequently
..... Click the link for more information.
, and Bruno MadernaMaderna, Bruno
, 1920–73, Italian composer and conductor, b. Venice. Maderna studied composing with Gian Francesco Malipiero and conducting with Hermann Scherchen. As a conductor he introduced many avant-garde works to Italy.
..... Click the link for more information.
 in electronic musicelectronic music
or electro-acoustic music,
term for compositions that utilize the capacities of electronic media for creating and altering sounds.

Initially, a distinction must be made between the technological development of electronic instruments and the
..... Click the link for more information.
. Pousseur composed for both traditional and electronic instruments. Among his works are Seismogrammes (1953), for magnetic tape; Mobile (1958), for two pianos; Electre (1960), an electronic ballet; Votre Faust (1968), an opera with variable plot, libretto by Michel ButorButor, Michel
, 1926–2016, French novelist and critic. As one of the chief exponents of the nouveau roman [new novel] (see French literature), Butor was less interested in the outcome of action in his novels than he was in the action itself.
..... Click the link for more information.
; La Seconde Apothéose de Rameau (1981), for chamber orchestra: Déclarations d'Orage (1988–89), for speaker, soprano, baritone, alto saxophone, tuba, synthesizer, orchestra, and tape; La Guirlande de Pierre (1997), for soprano, baritone, and piano; and Les Icare africains (2002), for solo voices, choir, and orchestra.

Bibliography

See his Musique, sémantique, société (1974).