György Ligeti

György Ligeti was a Hungarian-Austrian composer whose avant-garde innovations made him one of the most influential figures in 20th-century music. Born on May 28, 1923, in Dicsőszentmárton (now Târnăveni, Romania), Ligeti grew up during turbulent times in Eastern Europe and survived the Holocaust, experiences that deeply shaped his worldview and artistic voice.

After studying composition at the Franz Liszt Academy of Music in Budapest, Ligeti fled Hungary following the 1956 uprising, eventually settling in Vienna. His music soon caught the attention of the European avant-garde, particularly through groundbreaking orchestral works like Atmosphères and Lux Aeterna, whose dense textures and “micropolyphony” became his signature.

Ligeti’s compositions reached global audiences when several were used in Stanley Kubrick’s 2001: A Space Odyssey, lending his eerie, otherworldly sound to the film’s cosmic vision. His later works incorporated polyrhythms, folk influences, and surreal humour, showing his unwillingness to be confined by a single style.

Although best known as a concert composer, Ligeti occasionally ventured into theatre and opera, most notably with Le Grand Macabre (1977), an absurdist, apocalyptic opera that reflected his playful yet provocative artistic sensibility.

Ligeti died on June 12, 2006, in Vienna. Today, he is celebrated as a composer of dazzling imagination whose music expanded the boundaries of rhythm, texture, and tone, inspiring composers and filmmakers alike.