Born in Utrecht into a musical family, Andriessen studied with his father, the composer Hendrik Andriessen as well as composers Kees van Baaren and Luciano Berio. Andriessen taught at the Royal Conservatory of The Hague from 1974 to 2012, influencing notable composers. His opera La Commedia, based on Dante's Divine Comedy, won the 2011 Grawemeyer Award for Music Composition and was selected in 2019 by critics at The Guardian as one of the most outstanding compositions of the 21st century.
Born in Utrecht into a musical family Andriessen studied with his father the composer Hendrik Andriessen as well as composers Kees van Baaren and Luciano Berio Andriessen taught at the Royal Conservatory of The Hague from 1974 to 2012 influencing notable composers His opera La Commedia based on Dante's Divine Comedy won the 2011 Grawemeyer Award for Music Composition and was selected in 2019 by critics at The Guardian as one of the most outstanding compositions of the 21st century