May 2026

The Poetry of György Kurtág: Messages of the Late Miss R. V. Troussova

Composed between 1976 and 1980, and premiered in Paris on 14 January 1981 by Adrienne Csengery and the Ensemble intercontemporain under the direction of Sylvain Cambreling, "Messages de feu Demoiselle R. V. Troussova" ("Messages of the Late Miss R. V. Troussova") is a cycle of 2 brief movements based on poems in Russian by Rimma Dalos. The work drew the attention of the international musical community to György Kurtág, who was nearly 55 years old at the time, yet still little known outside his native country. It also brought to light a poet of incandescent intensity whose readership remained even more limited.