(b. 29 March 1940, Pașcani – d. 7 November 2020, Bucharest).
Romanian composer of mostly orchestral and chamber works that have been performed throughout Europe and elsewhere.
Prof. Nemescu studied composition with Mihail Jora, harmony with Paul Constantinescu and orchestration with Alexandru Pașcanu and Anatol Vieru at the Universitatea Națională de Muzică București from 1956–63. He later studied with Sigismund Toduță at the Academia de Muzică Gheorghe Dima in Cluj-Napoca in 1978 and there earned his DMus in musicology.
Among his honours were the Aaron Copland Prize in the USA (1970), seven prizes from the Uniunea Compozitorilor și Muzicologilor din România in Bucharest (1980, 1982, 1987, 1990, 1993, 1997, 2010, 2013), two prizes in the Concours International de Musique Électroacoustique de Bourges (1980, 1982), the Premiul from the Fundația Națională pentru Știință și Artă in Bucharest (1980), and the Prize of the International Confederation of Electroacoustic Music (1985). He was later named an officer, first class, of the Ordinul Meritul Cultural by the government of Romania (2004). His music has been performed in Australia, Austria, Belgium, Finland, France, Germany, Hungary, Israel, Italy, Japan, Moldova, the Netherlands, Poland, Romania, Spain, and Switzerland.
He was also active in other positions. He wrote many articles on aesthetics, as well as the book Capacitatile semantice ale muzicii – The Semantic Capacities of Music (1983, Editura Muzicală).
He initially taught at the Universitatea Transilvania din Brașov, where he was an assistant from 1971–74 and a lecturer on analysis and counterpoint from 1974–78. He then taught as a professor of counterpoint, harmony and music history at the Școala de Muzică George Enescu in Bucharest from 1978–90 and taught as Professor of Composition and doctoral advisor at the Universitatea Națională de Muzică București from 1990–2017.
SELECT LIST OF WORKS
ORCHESTRAL:
Triangle, 1963–64
Four Dimensions in Time – IV, 'Illuminations', mixed chorus, orchestra, fixed media, 1967
Four Dimensions in Time – V, '1918', orchestra, fixed media, 1968, revised 1976
Four Dimensions in Time – VII, orchestra, fixed media, 1970
Alpha – Omega recidiva, orchestra, fixed media, 1989
Finaleph, 1990
NonSymphony No. 5 (non-spectacular music in two parts: collective ritual around a lake; individual ritual–imaginary music in a period of five months), 1988–92
Quindecimortuorum for 1 o'clock AM, 2 percussion, symphonic band, 1994
PreSymphony No. 6 (non-spectacular music in a period of six years), 1996–2000
MultiSymphony 1 (original title PluriSymphony No. 1) (non-spectacular music in a period of one second or one minute), mixed chorus, orchestra, 2002
PostSymphony No. 2 (non-spectacular music in a period of two hours), 2001–03
A=1 a music for Noon, small orchestra (24 players)/orchestra, fixed media, 2005
Music of the First 17 Minutes of a Fatal Hour, 2014
Music of Minutes 17–30 of a Fatal Hour – for the first floor, voice, small orchestra, fixed media, 2015
EscaLiner, 2 percussion, string orchestra, fixed media, 2017
CHAMBER MUSIC:
Sonata for Clarinet and Piano, clarinet, piano, 1962
Poliritmii, clarinet, piano, 1963
Combinations in Circles, cello, ensemble (flute, clarinet, bassoon, trombone, viola), fixed media, 1965
Concentric, variable ensemble, fixed media, 1969
Spectacle pour un instant, piano, variable ensemble, fixed media, 1974
Le Chadouf de la Porte, viola/double bass, percussion, fixed media, 1976
Metabizantinirikon (spectacular, intimate pieces for practicing in a period of nine months), clarinet/soprano saxophone (+ alto saxophone, tenor saxophone)/violin/viola, fixed media, 1984
Alpha – Omega (individual and intimate practicing stage of music), alto saxophone (+ tenor saxophone, bass saxophone), violin, percussion, fixed media, 1988
IN-PAR, trombone, fixed media, 1988
Finalis-septima, clarinet, bassoon, violin, cello, piano, 2 percussion, 1989
Finalpha (music for sunset, with a cloudy sky, before a tempest, or for the beginning and end of a concert), trombone, 2 percussion, fixed media, 1990
Finalis, variable ensemble, fixed media, 1991
String Quartet for Midnight, string quartet, 1993
DanielPentAbsorbOR, alto saxophone (+ tenor saxophone, baritone saxophone, contrabass saxophone), fixed media, 1995
NegantiDiaDua for 2 o'clock AM, voice, alto saxophone, trombone, piano, percussion, fixed media, 1995
PhosisTriPercMetaMor for 3 o'clock AM, French horn, 6 percussion, fixed media, 1996
Septuor for 4 o'clock AM, oboe, clarinet, bassoon, violin, cello, piano, percussion, fixed media, 1997
QuintaBeit for 5 o'clock AM, voice, oboe, clarinet, bassoon, 2 trumpets, violin, cello, piano, 6 percussion, fixed media, 1998
BeitSonorum for 6 o'clock AM, oboe, clarinet, bassoon, violin, cello, piano, 4 percussion, fixed media, 1999
BeitIntervallum for 7 o'clock AM, clarinet, violin, piano, 4 percussion, fixed media, 2000
BeiTrissonum for 8 o'clock AM, 2 flutes, violin, viola, accordion, fixed media, 2001
rouaUruauor for 9 o'clock AM, flute, tuba, piano, percussion, fixed media, 2002
OUA for 10 o'clock AM, flute, clarinet, trombone, violin, piano, 2 percussion, fixed media, 2002–03
OU for 11 o'clock AM, flute, clarinet, French horn, trombone, tuba, violin, cello, piano, 2 percussion, fixed media, 2004
ASCENSIO, saxophone, 6 percussion, fixed media, 2005
ErAImII or EAE ou EA for 1 o'clock PM, flute, clarinet, bassoon, French horn, trumpet, trombone, violin, cello, piano, percussion, fixed media, 2006
EUI or ErUImII for 2 o'clock PM, clarinet, viola, piano, percussion, fixed media, 2007
CRISTIASCENSICELLO, flute, clarinet, soprano saxophone (+ alto saxophone), French horn, trombone, harp, cello, piano (+ celesta), percussion, 2007
A T, saxophones (1 player), viola, fixed media, 2008
OUIEIUO for 3 o'clock PM, flute, tuba, piano, percussion, fixed media, 2008–09
ITRIssonumBE oder ssonumBEITRI for 4 o'clock PM, 2 flutes, violin, viola, accordion, fixed media, 2009
ITintervallumBE or vallumBEITinter for 5 o'clock PM, clarinet, violin, piano, 4 percussion, fixed media, 2009–10
ITsonorumBE for 6 o'clock PM, oboe, clarinet, bassoon, violin, cello, piano, percussion, fixed media, 2010
PinAscensiCristiCho, piano, celesta, organ, 2 percussion, fixed media, 2010–11
BEseptimaIT for 7 o'clock PM, oboe, clarinet, bassoon, 2 trumpets, violin, cello, piano, 5 percussion, fixed media, 2011
ORsept for 8 o'clock PM, oboe, clarinet, bassoon, violin, cello, piano, percussion, fixed media, 2011–12
PerMETAMor or MorMETAPer for 9 o'clock PM, French horn, 6 percussion, fixed media, 2013
duaNEGdia oder diaNEGdua for 10 o'clock PM, voice, flute, trombone, piano, percussion, fixed media, 2013–14
NATIVITAS QUINDECI for 11 o'clock PM, 11 players, 2014
Parallel Destinies, bass clarinet, contrabass clarinet, fixed media, 2015
Music of Minutes 30–35 of a Fatal Hour – for the second floor, oboe, clarinet, bassoon, trombone, violin, cello, piano, percussion, fixed media, 2015
Music of Minutes 35–40 of a Fatal Hour – for the third floor, clarinet, trombone, violin, cello, piano, percussion, fixed media, 2015
Music of Minutes 40–45 of a Fatal Hour – for the fourth floor, clarinet, trombone, violin, piano, percussion, fixed media, 2016
Music of Minutes 45–50 of a Fatal Hour – for the fifth floor, trombone, violin, piano, percussion, fixed media, 2017
Music of Minutes 50–55 of a Fatal Hour – for the sixth floor, trombone, percussion, fixed media, 2018
Ephemeridæ, 5 violins, cello, 2020
CHORAL:
Two Madrigals, equal chorus, 1960
Salve Regina, mixed chorus, organ, 1981
Lumina lina, mixed chorus, 1988
VOCAL:
Je dis comme, voice, piano, 1996
AM UAT, voice, double bass, piano, 2008
PIANO:
Suggestions IV, 1979
Centrifuga (individual and intimate practicing stage of music), piano, fixed media, 1985
ELECTROACOUSTIC:
Naturel – Culturel (music for the peak of a mountain at sunrise), fixed media, 1973, revised 1983
Gradeatia (music for the ambience of a monastery), fixed media, 1982
Trisson (music around a temple), fixed media, 1986
Sonatu(h)r (music for sunset around a lake or in a meadow with blossoming trees), fixed media, 1987
Sæcula – Sæculorum (music for the end of a century), fixed media, 2000
Music of the Last Minutes of a Fatal Hour – seventh floor, fixed media, 2019
CONCEPTUAL MUSIC:
Suggestions I, variable ensemble, multimedia, 1968
Memorial, variable ensemble, multimedia, 1968
Will the King Die?!, any player, clock, fixed media, multimedia, 1968
Graphological Music, variable ensemble, multimedia, 1969
Ulysses, variable ensemble, fixed media, spatial multimedia, 1972, revised 1982
METAMUSIC:
Semantics for n melomen, 1971–74
IMAGINARY MUSIC:
Cromoson – A Song of Objects, 1974–75
Will You Be Able by Yourself?, 1976