The composer and conductor, born in Transylvania in 1944, spoke tough, clear German – which was no surprise to anyone who had experienced his greatest operatic success. “Three Sisters” based on the drama by Anton Chekhov was already a success in Lyon in 1998, was replayed again and again and established the fame of Peter Eötvös, which reached far beyond avant-garde circles. The “Three Sisters”, matching the unfortunate text, should be sung by three countertenors. The piece sounds as bitter as Eötvös spoke. But this idiom, which can also be found in Béla Bartók, his teacher Zoltán Kodály and his composer colleagues György Ligeti and György Kurtág, developed a great pull in Eötvös. Sensuality, attack, urgency were mixed together.
The composer and conductor Peter Eötvös is dead – culture
