The Basel Sinfonietta is dedicating a new portrait album to Sofia Gubaidulina: «Figures of Time»
Sofia Gubaidulina (1931–2025) is considered one of the most important female composers of the 20th century. With the album "Figures of Time," the Basel Sinfonietta pays tribute to her work, uniting pieces from different creative periods and instrumentations. Together with the NDR Bigband, the ensemble, under the direction of Titus Engel, interprets the rarely performed "revue music" for symphony orchestra and jazz band. The recording was made during a guest appearance at the 2024 Ruhrtriennale in Bochum.
Gubaidulina's work is characterized by enormous stylistic diversity – from serial experimentation and electronic sounds to jazz elements – and is deeply spiritual.
The first reviews are already praising the album. Rainer Pöllmann writes on Deutschlandfunk:
"A wild stylistic ride through orchestral avant-garde, pop-disco, and jazz. Titus Engel masterfully holds all the threads together, filling the somewhat problematic concept from 1978 with today's energy, precision, and power. A discovery!"
The album showcases the stylistic range of Gubaidulina's work: the introverted, spiritually charged "Introitus" passage contrasts with the subversive, garish, and ironic "Revuemusik," which caused a sensation at its premiere in Moscow in 1976. The music moves between tranquility, meditative stillness, and expressive, almost impetuous energy—a facet that makes Gubaidulina so unique as a grande dame of contemporary music.
«Figures of Time» was released by Naxos in September 2025.
