Kagel, Mauricio Raul

▪ 2009

      Argentine-born avant-garde composer

born Dec. 24, 1931, Buenos Aires, Arg.

died Sept. 18, 2008, Cologne, Ger.

incorporated sound effects—both artificial ones and those using the human voice—into complex provocative musical compositions such as Anagrama (1957–58), with sound effects created by soloists, a speaking chorus, and musical instruments; Acustica (1968–70), in which he made use of car horns, cash registers, and walkie-talkies; and Staatstheater (1967–70), an “antiopera” consisting of nine sections to be performed in random order. Kagel was strongly influenced by Pierre Boulez, who persuaded him to immigrate to Germany in 1957, and Karlheinz Stockhausen, whom he succeeded as director of the Cologne Courses for New Music. Kagel also wrote radio plays and screenplays and taught at Cologne's University of Music.

* * *