The Treasure Hunt with Bas Wiegers

In this episode of The Treasure Hunt, Bas visits composer Vito Žuraj at his home in Slovenia. Together, they reflect on their ongoing collaborations and dive into Žuraj’s creative process - from experimental works involving chefs and theatrical soprano pieces to his upcoming violin concerto for Isabelle Faust.

Žuraj shares how ideas emerge through a balance of playful exploration and focused execution, inspired by John Cleese’s concept of “open” and “closed” modes of creativity. The conversation reveals how collaboration, experimentation, and personal experiences shape his music - ultimately leading to a deeply personal new concerto that explores themes of emotional release and authenticity.

 

Links to recordings 

 

Vito Žuraj - Ubuquité 

Hélène Fauchère, Ensemble Intercontemporain, Matthias Pintscher  

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ncugzv9xYOg

 

Vito Žuraj - Iasus’s Remorse for Violin Solo

Giorgos Panagiotidis 

https://www.youtube.com/shorts/TZ1w178RRxY

 

Vito Žuraj - Hors d’Oeuvre for cook-performer and orchestra

Daniel Gottschlich, Slovenian Philharmonic Orchestra, Simon Krecic 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ffxSWu0k4Mg

 

Vito Žuraj - Api-danza Macabra 

WDR Symphony Orchestra, Cristian Măcelaru

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H-phDfI7i_A

 

And the link to John Cleese’s lecture about creativity:  

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pb5oIIPO62g

This time, Bas sits down with the extraordinary musician Patricia Kopatchinskaja - someone who refuses to stay in any box. They talk about why we play the music we play, how to stay curious in a world that prefers certainty, and what it really means to find truth inside a piece of music. Patricia shares why she'd rather ask WHY than play it safe, how working with living composers keeps music alive, and why she thinks the word "interpretation" might be missing the point entirely.

A conversation for anyone who believes music is not just notes on a page - but something urgent, human, and alive.

 

The music you heard is here: 

Enescu - Minstrel (impressions of childhood) 
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7j3A7LqawvM&t=16s

Illes - Vont-tér Munich Chamber Orchestra + Clemens Schuldt 
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oAbP1uJjPWY&list=OLAK5uy_lR_Q52Sgm9LQ_2ZC5FEYjRwt9d2FfiNgE

Vivaldi - RV 191 Giardino Armonico + Giovanni Antonini 
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VxLu5Ym9fNU

In this second of two episodes about De Materie (Matter) by Louis Andriessen, fellow composer David Dramm reflects on his close relationship with Andriessen and the creation of De Materie. He describes witnessing the piece’s early development, studying with Andriessen, and experiencing the premiere of De Materie in 1989 up close. Together with host Bas Wiegers, he explores the work’s signature elements - its hammer-like opening chords, mystical second movement, playful boogie-woogie references, and slowly unfolding climaxes - showing how Andriessen combined rigorous structure with raw energy, beauty, and humor.

Music: 
Louis Andriessen - De Materie played by Asko|Schönberg and Reinbert de Leeuw 
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=OLAK5uy_nNB6P-Q3PRGxAlesE6MVMuv0s-JJmc6D8

In the first of two episodes on De Materie, we explore Louis Andriessen’s groundbreaking masterpiece with biographer Jacqueline Oskamp. We trace the influences behind this pivotal work - from the pressure of Andriessen’s earlier successes to the political and musical ideals that shaped his 1980s style. The episode highlights the piece’s structure, its bold musical logic, and the key collaborations with Jan van Vlijmen and Robert Wilson that helped form its distinctive character. We end with a preview of Episode Two, featuring a former student offering his own view on Andriessen and his legacy.

Music: 
Louis Andriessen - De Materie played by Asko|Schönberg and Reinbert de Leeuw 
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=OLAK5uy_nNB6P-Q3PRGxAlesE6MVMuv0s-JJmc6D8

Conductor Bas Wiegers interviews composer Márton Illés after two intense days recording Illes' new cello concerto with Nicolas Altstaedt and the Münchener Kammerorchester at the Bayerische Rundfunk. 

They discuss finding a personal compositional language, balancing freedom and structure, the physical and acoustic reality of sound, use of electronics, and how collaboration and selflessness shape complex contemporary music in rehearsal and recording.

The music played in the episode can be found here: 

Márton Illés - Violinkonzert (2019) 
Patricia Kopatchinskaja, WDR Sinfonieorchester, Michael Wendeberg 
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bzsGf8NebOg

Márton Illés - Ljubljana24 (2018–20/24) 
Rundfunk-Sinfonieorchester Berlin Enno Poppe
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N1GbmfvlzKI&list=RDN1GbmfvlzKI&start_radio=1