1966 born in Cologne (March 26); childhood & adolescence in the Sudan,
Belgium and the Philippines
1988-93 Studies in Musicology, History and Political Science at the University of Bonn (MA),
private studies in composition with Friedhelm Aufenanger
1990-91 Work for the Goethe Institute Kathmandu, Nepal as part of a projekt aiming
at the preservation of local musical performance practices
1994-96 Studies in composition with Lee Hyla at New England Conservatory in Boston (MA)
1996-98 Director of the Electronic Music Studio at City University of New York; instructor
for harmony and counterpoint at Baruch College City, University of New York
1998-2002 Doctoral Fellowship in composition at Columbia University New York with
Tristan Murail; taught composition, computer music and psycho-acoustics at
Columbia University as an assistant to Prof. Murail
1999 Benjamin-Britten-Fellowship at the Tanglewood Music Festival
2000-01 Participant of the cursus annuel de composition et d'informatique at IRCAM/
Centre Pompidou; Reid Hall Fellowship; Master Classes with Brian Ferneyhough,
Salvatore Sciarrino, Jonathan Harvey and George Benjamin
2001 Curator of the "Helmut Lachenmann Week in New York" in cooperation with the Goethe
Institute New York and the Fritz Reiner Center for Contemporary Music
2002 Completion of "Doctor of Musical Arts" at Columbia University New York; moves to Berlin
2002-04 Compositeur en recherche at IRCAM/Centre Pompidou: collaboration with Nicolas
Misdariis and Steve McAdams within the framework of a commission of
Ircam/Ensemble Intercontemporain
2003 Research commission of the House of World Cultures, Berlin on: "Spatial Concepts in
non-Western Music"
2003-04 Guest lecturer at the University of the Arts, Berlin: taught a Seminar on "Acoustics
and Psycho-acoustics for Composers"
2004 Guest lecturer Acousmonium Workshop at the "Hanns Eisler"-Conservatory of Music, Berlin
2004 Curator of the "TRACING MIGRATIONS Festival Berlin" featuring the concert works of
young composers from the Arab world (sponsored by Hauptstadtkulturfonds
and UNESCO, Paris)
2005 Curator of "Der musikalische Moment" with Helmut Lachenmann and Toshio Hosokawa
at the House of World Cultures, Berlin
2006 Guest lecturer at the GLOBAL INTERPLAY-Project in Cairo, Egypt and Berlin
(Musik derJahrhunderte / SWR Stuttgart; artistic director of the ensemble courage Dresden
2007 Lecturer at the "Music and Variantology"-Congress, Academy of Arts and
Media, Cologne
2008 Lectures at universities and conservatories in Stuttgart, Bremen, Essen, Shanghai,
Tokyo,
San Diego
2009 CD-Production of a portrait CD with the WERGO label supported by the
Deutscher Musikrat
2009-10 Professorship, Conservatory of Music, Stuttgart
top
Prizes and Awards
2009 Residency and Commission: ZKM Karlsruhe
2008 Commande d'Etat, France: new piece for Ensemble Cairn, Paris
2008 Commission of the Cultural Senate of Berlin: new piece for Ensemble Mosaik
2008 Invitation of the Takefu International Music Festival (Japan), composer-in-residence 2008
2007 Scholarship of the Experimentalstudio für Akustische Kunst (SWR), Freiburg
2006-07 Rome Prize of the German Academy Rome Villa Massimo
2004-05 Fellowship of the Bavarian Academy of Arts and Sciences, Villa Concordia Bamberg
2000-01 Reid-Hall-Fellowship for Overseas Studies, Columbia University
2000 Paul Fromm Award of Harvard University/Tanglewood Music Center 2000
1999 Benjamin-Britten-Memorial Fellowship, Tanglewood Music Center 1999
1999 National Flute Association Commissioning Prize
1999 Boris Rapoport Prize for Composition
1998-2002 Presidential Fellowship Columbia University New York
1998 Meet the Composer Grant, New England Foundation for the Arts
1997 Robert Starer Award for Composition, New York
1994-96 Scholarship New England Conservatory
1984 First prize in Instrumental Performance, Interscholastic Association of South East
Asian International Schools Competition, Djakarta, Indonesia
Selected Compositions and Performances
2010 New Work for Ensemble Cairn, Théâtre des Bouffes du Nord
2009 New Work for Munich BiennaleKlangspuren Plus Series
2008 Wien modern (commission): New Work for Ensemble (premiere 2008)
2008 DeutschlandRadio / Ultraschall Festival 2008 (commission): "Stratigraphie" (premiere 2008)
2007 Musique Action Nancy (commission) : "Mobile Resonance"
2007 WDR, Witten Festival für Neue Musik 2007 (commission): "Resonant Space"
2006 SWR, Stuttgart (commission): "Metall" for large orchestra (premiere 2008)
2006 Auditorium di Roma: "TwilightDialogues II" premiere: Ensemble Recherche
2006 Maerzmusik Festival / Berliner Festspiele (commission): "Clair-obscur"
2005 Klangwerkstatt Festival, Berlin (commission):"Speaking Of..."
2005 Radio France, Paris (commission):"This is what I am seeing here..."
2004 Academy of Arts Berlin, Wintermusic Festival: "Diastema"
2004 Ircam/Ensemble Intercontemporain, Paris (commission): "Jardin des fleuves"
2003 musikFabrik, Köln/KarnaticLab Festival (commission): "Twilight Dialogues I"
2002 Nouvel Ensemble Modern/MATA Festival New York (commission): "Diastema"
2001 Ensemble Modern, Alte Oper Frankfurt ":Phantom Islands"
1999 Tanglewood Music Center/Fromm Foundation Harvard University (commission):"Phantom Islands"
top
Selected Publications:
• "Sechs Werke von Sebastian Stier". CD-Text, WERGO Edition Zeitgenössische Musik (D.M.R.)
WER 6569 2 (2008)
• " Migration and Identity: Perspectives in Contemporary Arabic Music" Jahrbuch derBerliner
Gesellschaft für Neue Musik, Pfau Verlag, 2007
• "HörRaum Stadt" Jahrbuch der Berliner Gesellschaft für Neue Musik, Pfau Verlag, 2007
• "Braucht die Neue Musik den Kammermusiksaal?" Bauwelt 8/05 (2005): 26-27
• "Sonic Arts in Germany." M.I.T. Press Computer Music Journal 26, 4 (Spring 2002): 54-57
• "Chambres Séparées, KOMA, entrop, Zwischenwelten: Gerhard Winkler." M.I.T. Press
Computer Music Journal 25, 1 (2001): 75-76
• "Musical Material Matters". Current Musicology 67/68 (Winter 2002): 156-174
• "Musik und Utopie." Universalmaschine Heft 02, Berlin (2001): 68-70
• "Donald Martino's Concerto for Alto Saxophone and Orchestra." [CD-liner text] New World Records.
Recorded Anthology of American Music, No. 80529-2 (1998)
Miscellaneous:
Jury Participation
• International Society for Contemporary Music (ISCM) 1999-2001, New York
• IX Concorso Internazionale di Composizione Franco Evangelisti 2006, Nuova Consonanza, Rome
• Landesmusikrat Berlin Wettbewerb "Jugend komponiert" 2007, Berlin
Collaborations with visual artists (since 2002)
• Curtis Anderson (Cologne)
• Christoph Brech (Munich)
• Almut Determeyer (Munich)
• Eberli/Mantel (Zurich)
• Alexander Polzin (Berlin)
• Curator of the concert "Organic Worlds" in collaborations with Kunstfonds
Sachsen, ensemble courage - European Center for the Arts, Hellerau, 2006
Performances as saxophonist with (selection):
Bernhard Lang, Robin Hayward, Heather O'Donnell, Lukas Foss, Tan Dun, JohnZorn, Ned McGowan, Steve Drury, George Russell Bigband, Gustav Mahler Youth Symphony Orchestra
top