Martin Schlumpf

03.12.1947

Martin Schlumpf was born in Aarau where he attended school until completion of his 'Matura' education in 1966.
During this time he performed as double-bassist and occasionally as a saxophonist in various jazz formations. In the classical field, he was taught piano at irregular intervals during his eight-year study of the cello.
Following a central acoustic experience provided by Anton Webern the young musician began attempts at composition in 1964.
1986 saw the beginning of his musical studies in Zurich with the following as his main subjects:
- Clarinet (Hansjürg Lethold)
- Piano (Warren Thew and Evelyne Dubourg)
- Conducting (Ferdinand Leitner)
- Theory and composition (Rudolf Kelterborn)
1971 - Received his piano diploma under Warren Thew,
1972 - Graduated with a diploma in theory under Rudolf Kelterborn, Further studies led him in 1974 to Boris Blacher in Berlin.
In 1975 Martin Schlumpf became a piano teacher at the Seminar Küssnacht and music teacher at Freudenberg college in Zurich. He has been professor for music theory at the ‘Hochschule Musik und Theater Zürich’ (Zurich School of Music and Theatre) since 1977 and teaches group improvisation there since 1991.
Unitl 1980 Martin Schlumpf was primarily a composer in the field of classical music and won various prizes at competitions for composition including the first prize in the competitions of the City of Zurich from 1972 until 1979 and first prize in the ‘Tonhalle’ competition in 1975. After 1980 he returned to improvised music and performed in various groups of his own, initially as double-bassist together with Urs Blöchlinger in the ‘Trio 80’ and then, after 1982, as saxophonist and bass clarinettist in the twelve-headed orchestra ‘Swiss Fusion 84’, the sextet ‘Die Vögel’ and above all in ‘Bermuda Viereck’.
Martin Schlumpf also cooperated on other projects, examples of his involvement include:
- A film music project together with Christoph Baumann
- In ‘Duck Dich’, a cabaret with Martin Hamburger
- In the John Tchicai-Orchestra
- In the big band ‘Notspielplatz Zürich’
- In the international orchestra ‘Cadavre exquis’ by Urs Blöchlinger
- In the theatre projects ‘Krötenaquarium’ and ‘Attinghausen’.
He has been a member of and the soprano saxophonist with the ‘Aargauer Saxophon Quartett’ since 1987. Since the end of the eighties Martin Schlumpf has been involved in various activities in that area of intersection between improvisation and composition, gradually paying more and more attention to his work as a composer in a modified, quasi ‘post modern’ style under which works such as the cycle ‘Vier Jahreszeiten’, the piano concert ‘Mouvements’, ‘Klarinettentrio’, ‘Rattaplasma 2’ or the cello concert ‘Waves’ have already been produced.
Since 1999 Martin Schlumpf has expanded the involvement of the computer in his compositional work, the aim of which is to achieve an aggrandisement of the sound palette and create complex, polymetric structures.
In 1999 he received a research commission from Zurich School of Music and Theatre for the computer-sound processing of several ‘Studies for Player Piano’ by Conlon Nancarrow.
Martin Schlumpf lives with his wife in Würenlingen

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