Dufourt, Hugues

Dufourt, Hugues, French composer and teacher;b. Lyons, Sept. 28, 1943. He was a student of Louis Hiltbrand (piano, 1961–68) and of Jacques Guyonnet (composition, 1965–70) at the Geneva Cons., and also studied at the Univ. Jean Moulin in Lyons (philosophy, 1968–73). From 1975 to 1981 he was co-director of the Itineraire ensemble. With Alain Bancquart and Tristan Murail, he founded the Collectif de Recherche Instrumentale de Synthese Sonore (CRISS) in 1977. He later served as director of research at the CNRS and as a teacher at the Ecole des Hautes etudes en Sciences Sociales in Paris. In 1975 he won the Grand Prix de Musique de Chambre of the SACEM, in 1985 the Koussevitzky Prize, and in 1994 the composer’s prize of the SACEM.

Works

Brisants for Piano and 16 Instrumentalists (Geneva, Nov. 30,1968); Mura della cita di dite for 17 Instruments (Geneva, Oct. 19, 1969); Down to a Sunless Sea for 16 Strings (Geneva, Aug. 20, 1970); Dusk Light for Soprano, Mezzo-soprano, Tenor, Baritone, and 16 Instrumentalists (Geneva, Oct. 10,1971); Erewhon for 6 Percussionists (1972–76; Royan, April 4, 1977); La Tempesta for Instrumental Ensemble (1976–77; Royan, April 2, 1977); Antiphysis for Flute and Chamber Orch. (La Rochelle, July 7, 1978); Sombre Journee for 6 Percussionists (Paris, March 30, 1979); Saturne for Electronic Instruments, 6 Percussionists, and Instrumental Ensemble (Paris, Dec. 3,1979); Surgir for Orch. (1980–84; Paris, Feb. 13,1985); La nuit face au del for 6 Percussionists (Aix en Provence, July 3, 1984); L’heure des traces for 20 Instruments (Milan, May 19, 1986); La mort de Procris for Chorus, after Shakespeare (Strasbourg, Sept. 26, 1986); Hommage a Charles Negre for 6 Instruments (Paris, Dec. 2, 1986); Saxophone Quartet (1993); The Watery Star for 8 Instruments (1993); An Schwager Kronos for Piano (1994); Dedale, opera (1995); L’espace aux ombres for 16 Instruments (1995); Euclidean Abyss for 8 Instruments (1996); La Maison du Sourd for Flute and Orch. (1996–97).

—Laura Kuhn/Dennis McIntire