Heinz Holliger
Swiss music prize 2015
Heinz Holliger was born in Langenthal in 1939, and studied oboe and composition at the Bern Conservatory while still at secondary school. After studying in Paris and at the Basel Music Academy between 1958 and 1963 he embarked on a busy international career as a concert oboist. Holliger’s compositions span the full range of genres, from stage works and orchestral, solo and chamber music to numerous vocal pieces – 130 in total, many of which are regularly performed both in Switzerland and abroad. His work centres on setting language and literature to music, as well as engagement with Swiss folk culture.
