It is with profound sadness that we announce today the passing of Peter Eötvös – composer, conductor and pedagogue – following an extended period of illness which he nevertheless endured with fortitude, optimism and his own characteristic humour. It is a terrible loss for the world of music and the creative arts that Peter should have been struck down so cruelly, at the height of his creative powers.

Peter was an incomparable inspiration, mentor and friend not only to his devoted wife and partner Maria, their families and friends but also to generations of younger composers and conductors, as well as to his countless musical and artistic collaborators over 60 years of ceaseless creative activity.

His vast output of compositions in all areas of music — operas, symphonic works, concertos and chamber music — constitutes a catalogue of timeless riches which have complemented his simultaneous career as conductor over many decades. Internationally respected as both principal conductor and guest conductor with many of the world’s greatest orchestras,

Peter Eötvös also took a very active role in the education of, and transmission to, young and emerging artists. As a professor at music universities in Germany, he introduced new music to the next generation of conductors and composers and helped to ignite their passion for it. As founder of the Peter Eötvös Contemporary Music Foundation for composers and conductors in Budapest, Peter has been helping young artists turn professional for the past 20 years and has been promoting new music all over the world. During the last decade, having moved back to Budapest, he made a special focus on his work with the orchestras and theatres in his home city. His final opera, Valuska, was commissioned by the Hungarian State Opera House and received its world premiere in December 2023.

Most of Peter’s major works live on in recordings, as do his polymathic wisdoms in many important essays, publications and broadcasts.

In a world too often marred by rivalries, Peter was universally admired by his peers (including his mentors Boulez and Stockhausen) and generations of students in long lasting and far reaching relationships and friendships throughout the world. Peter is irreplaceable – and will be sorely missed. He will remain as one of the most famous Hungarian composers, constituting a line that goes Bartók-Ligeti-Kurtág-Eötvös.