Ilya Demutsky

Biography

Graduated from Choir College named after Michael Glinka, Demutsky earned Master’s degree in choral conducting from Saint Petersburg State Conservatory (class of professor T.Khitrovaya). He won a Fulbright scholarship to pursue a Master of Music in Composition at San Francisco Conservatory of Music, where he studied with David Conte.

Composed a number of vocal, choral, chamber and symphonic pieces, among which operas New Jerusalem and The Black Square, ballets The Hero of Our Time and Nureyev (both commissioned by the Bolshoi Theatre, choreography by Yuri Possokhov, directed by Kirill Serebrennikov); An Optimistic Tragedy for the San Francisco Ballet (choreography by Yuri Possokhov), Anna Karenina for Joffrey Ballet (Chicago) in co-production with the Australian Ballet (choreography by Yuri Possokhov), and Gabrielle Chanel for the MuzArts Foundation (choreography by Yuri Possokhov).

Authored the music for the Sochi Paralympics 2014 Opening Ceremony and the soundtrack for The Rings of the World, the official Sochi Olympics documentary, directed by Sergei Miroshnichenko. His works for drama theatre include Kirill Serebrennikov’s Martyrer, Who Is Happy in Russia? and Outside (the last produced for Avignon Theatre Festival 2019). Composed music for Kirill Serebrennikov’s film The Student, that won the Best Composer at 2016 European Film Awards.

He also had the First Prize at the International Composition Context 2 Agosto (Bologna, 2013), received the Medal from the President of the Italian Republic, Giorgio Napolitano, The Golden Mask National Award and Benois de la Danse Award, among others.

Photo by Daniil Rabovsky.