Beat Furrer was born in Schaffhausen, Switzerland in 1954 and moved to Vienna in 1975. To all intents and purposes he is an Austrian composer.
He studied composition with Roman Haubenstock-Ramati and they developed a close friendship based on mutual esteem which lasted until the older composer’s death in 1994. Thanks to Otmar Suitner, who taught him conducting, Furrer has been in a position to perform works by his professor on a regular basis. He is credited, for example, with the world première of the revised version of Haubenstock-Ramati’s opera Amerika in 1992.

In 1985, Furrer founded the new music ensemble Klangforum Wien, which he led a number of years both as artistic director and conductor. It testifies to his leadership as well as of that of his successors that the ensemble is still going strong and has established itself on the international scene as one of the best groups of its kind world-wide. (Universal Edition)