Regina Irman facts for kids

Regina Irman (born on March 22, 1957) is a talented Swiss musician, music teacher, and composer. A composer is someone who writes music. She has created many different kinds of music, from pieces for single instruments to large works for choirs and even music for plays.

Early Life and Musical Journey

Starting Her Music Studies

Regina Irman was born in Winterthur, Switzerland. She began her music studies at the Winterthur Conservatory in 1976. In 1982, she earned her teacher's diploma. Her main instrument was the guitar.

Discovering Percussion and Composing

After studying guitar, Regina also started learning percussion instruments. These are instruments you hit, shake, or scrape to make sounds, like drums or cymbals. In 1995, she earned a special concert diploma for percussion, which she passed with high honors.

Regina started writing her own music while she was still studying guitar. After 1983, many groups and organizations asked her to compose music for them. This is called getting a "commission." Some of these included the city of Zurich, a cultural foundation called Pro Helvetia, and the Swiss Youth Music Competition.

Performing and Teaching

Regina Irman has performed her music in many countries. She has played in Switzerland, Germany, Italy, France, and Ukraine. Besides composing, she also works as a drummer. She teaches instruments to students. Today, she is a lecturer at the Pädagogischen Hochschule Thurgau, which is a university for teachers.

Her Musical Works

Regina Irman has composed a wide variety of music. She writes solo pieces, which are for one instrument. She also creates chamber music, which is for a small group of instruments. Her works include pieces for choirs (groups of singers) and music for theater shows.

Here are some examples of the different kinds of music she has written:

• Hill at Ceret (1983): A piece for two violas and a double bass.
• Speculum (1984): This work uses four clarinets, two percussion players, and even special effects like mirrors and colored lights.
• A dada = foreign songs sheet (1985–1986): This piece is for a mezzo-soprano (a type of singer) and piano. It uses texts by an artist named Adolf Wolfli.
• Wind Chimes (1986): A composition for piano.
• A Funeral March (1987): A trio for percussion instruments and a spoken voice.
• Requiem to the Death (1991-1993): This is a large work for 25 women's voices, using text by the poet Akhmatova.
• Mirror Dance (1993): A piece for two recorders and drums.
• Words (1995): Written for a saxophone ensemble and percussion.
• Landscapes (2003): Five pieces for a group of six percussion players. These pieces describe different landscapes like "Snow landscape" and "Mechanical landscape."
• Ten short pieces based on themes by Bach and Biber (2004): These are for a solo violin.

Regina Irman's music often explores unique sounds and combinations of instruments, showing her creative and experimental style.