Few composers have so convincingly spanned as wide a stylistic range as Luciano Berio. From deceptively simple arrangements of folk and popular songs, via the stern rigour of the Sequenza and Chemins series, to the chaotic-sounding density of Sinfonia or Laborintus II, there is something for almost everyone. He is, perhaps, the most approachable of that generation of composers that also included Nono, Boulez, Stockhausen and Xenakis. It was Stockhausen who said, “liking is remembering,” and the frequent occurrence of elements that are, or seem, familiar (folk melodies, genuine or pastiche; passages from the classical masters; fragments of text) may be the key to Berio’s accessibility.

Lived 1925-2003
Mostly in Milan, Rome, Paris, New York, Boston
Best known for Sinfonia, the Sequenza series, Folk songs, Passagio, Laborintus II