Thomas Fortmann

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Thomas Fortmann (*1951 in Gerzensee, Bern) is a Swiss composer and founder of the Accademia Amiata and the art festival "Toscana delle Culture".

1 Youth and Rock/Pop career
2 Contemporary music career
3 Works
4 External links

[edit] Youth and Rock/Pop career

Thomas Fortmann, son of Operetta singer Greta Saar and cooperation owner Rudolf Fortmann, was born as the first of two children. He studied composition and music theory in Bern, Switzerland. At age 17 he wrote his first hit which was released in 27 countries, followed by the successful musical "Wilhelm Tell", where German rock star Udo Lindenberg played the lead. During this time he worked with artists such as Alexis Corner, Dieter Dierks, Cockpit, Su Kramer and many others. After 10 years he decided to turn his back on the Rock/Pop world.

[edit] Contemporary music career

At the age of 26, Thomas abandoned his career as a Rock musician and dedicated himself to further studies in composition and instrumentation. This period formed the foundation for the following various chamber works, the two symphonies Pythagoras and Aion, the Oratorio Francescano, and the three music-plays:Sommerfrau & Winterwolf, the Cross and the Rooster and Collodis Pinocchio. He received scholarships and commissions from the towns of Zurich and Bern, the Swiss government, the European Union, the Opera of Zurich, Open Opera St.Gallen, Mozart Festival Trento and many others. In the mid’ 80s Thomas and his family moved to Tuscany where he founded the Accademia Amiata and its Festival "Toscana delle Culture". His album for Divine Art Records, issued in autumn of 2007, includes the major works "Requiem for an Unborn Child", "Tango Catolico" and "Ladyboy", performed by the Accademia Amiata Ensemble.

The music of Thomas Fortmann does not subscribe to any particular school of thought. He studied the various composition techniques, but being the autodidactic person he is, he maintained a critical point of view towards them. It lead to the development of a notably personal style, often uniting different, sometimes even contrary impulses of the modern. Formalistic ideas seem to serve him mainly as a method of transportation and play, resulting in very original ideas, like for example: the ‘complementary twelve-tone technique’. It is, however, always important to him, despite the frequent use of complex structures, to directly communicate with the listener and make an emotional impact:

"Composing is an adventurous journey. However, street signs should not be the nucleus of sucha journey. Therefore, form has to serve the structure and expression of a piece, not vice versa!"