Commissions to Alex Hren & Żaneta Rydzewska

On May 9, 2026, KölnMusik will present the world premieres of two commissions by the winners of the 2025 ACHT BRÜCKEN International Composition Competition, performed by the Ensemble Musikfabrik at the Kölner Philharmonie. The competition took place for the thirteenth time as part of the AchtBrücken 2025 festival and is open to composers up to 35 years of age. The winners of this year’s competition are Żaneta Rydzewska and Alex Hren.

Żaneta Rydzewska is from Poland. She studied instrumental composition with Brigitta Muntendorf at the Cologne University of Music and Dance until 2019, followed by philosophy at the University of Warsaw. She is the recipient of the 2019 Bernd Alois Zimmermann Composition Prize from the City of Cologne and the 2022 ZAiKS Composition Prize. In her music, she frequently draws on nature, physics, philosophy, current social issues, and interpersonal relationships. Her work Superheroines for ensemble mimics the expressiveness and mood of six women engaged in a surrealistic conversation.

Alex Hren was born in Slovenia and has been studying composition at the Academy of Music at the University of Ljubljana since 2021, under Prof. Vito Žuraj, among others. He is currently pursuing a master’s degree in instrumental composition at the Cologne University of Music and Dance under Prof. Miroslav Srnka. Like Żaneta Rydzewska, he can already look back on a series of notable projects with leading international ensembles and impressed the competition jury with the originality and conciseness of his personal musical language. His new work Cotton Candy explores the vibrant essence of “amusement park machines” and links it to reflections on modern global themes.

The commissions to Żaneta Rydzewska and Alex Hren are made possible by the Ernst von Siemens Music Foundation.

Further information:
koelner-philharmonie.de

Date

May 9, 2026
Kölner Philharmonie