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Maxim ShalyginМаксим Шалигін
Background information
Born	(1985-01-30) January 30, 1985 (age 39) Kamianske, Ukraine
Genres	Contemporary classical
Occupation(s)	Composer, conductor, performer
Years active	2001–present
Website	maximshalygin.com

Maxim Shalygin (born January 30, 1985, in Kamianske, Ukraine) is a Ukrainian-Dutch composer, conductor, and performer known for his innovative compositions that blend a wide range of techniques.

Early life and education

Shalygin began studying composition at the age of sixteen under Iryna Ivashenko in his hometown Kamianske (then Dniprodzerzhynsk). In 2004, he studied for a year with Boris Tishchenko at the N. A. Rimsky-Korsakov Saint Petersburg State Conservatory. He earned his first master's degree in 2010 from the Ukrainian National Tchaikovsky Academy of Music in Kyiv, Ukraine, studying under Ihor Shcherbakov and influenced by composer Svyatoslav Lunyov. In 2011, he received a second master's degree from the Royal Conservatory of The Hague in the Netherlands, where he studied with Cornelis de Bondt and Diderik Wagenaar.

Career

In 2010, Shalygin relocated to the Netherlands, where he has composed over 40 works across various genres, including chamber music, vocal music, symphonic pieces, electroacoustic music, and scores for theatre, ballet, and film. His compositions are noted for expanding traditional playing techniques, maintaining a tonal language, and avoiding avant-garde radicalism.

Shalygin's works have been performed at numerous international venues and festivals, such as Gaudeamus Muziekweek in the Netherlands, Klarafestival in Belgium, and the Huddersfield Contemporary Music Festival in the UK. Ensembles like Asko/Schönberg, Amsterdam Sinfonietta, and Slagwerk Den Haag have featured his compositions.

In 2016, he founded the Shapeshift Ensemble in the Netherlands, initiating the S I M I L A R project, a multi-chapter cycle exploring the intimate and transformative power of specific instruments and ensembles. Each chapter is dedicated to a unique instrumental combination, showcasing their expressive potential in innovative ways. To date, the project includes:

1. Lacrimosa or 13 Magic Songs (2017) – Seven violins. This composition is the first chapter, written for seven violinists. It explores themes of sorrow and transcendence through intricate violin interplay.
2. Todos los fuegos el fuego (2019) – Eight saxophones. A musical cycle for saxophone octet, this composition immerses listeners in a mystical experience, creating a profound link between music and literature.
3. Severade (2021) – Nine cellos. This piece creates a rich tapestry of sound that delves into the depths of the cello's expressive capabilities.
4. Delirium (2023) – Four grand pianos. 'Delirium' offers an immersive auditory experience that challenges perceptions of space and time.
5. Bleeding (2024) – Thirteen brass players. Bleeding brings a detail from Bruckner's huge Eighth Symphony into today's language.

Amandante is Shalygin's first opera, which premiered on October 2, 2024, at the Muziekgebouw aan 't IJ in Amsterdam. The opera is inspired by Plato's Symposium and explores the dynamics of love and desire. Dutch reviews of 'Amandante' are predominantly positive. NRC praises the ‘masterful dramaturgy’ and the ‘triumph of musical imagination’, with the performance offering a ‘rollercoaster of emotions’. de Volkskrant calls the opera a ‘pompous potpourri of over-familiar musical styles’ and finds the scenes disjointed. Theaterkrant describes the music as a ‘kind of Philip Glass in overdrive’, with repetitive motifs leading to intense climaxes. The performance was provided by Ukrainian ensemble Nova Opera, which continues to strive for innovative musical theatre despite the war in their homeland. The production combines music with visual elements, such as the video ‘Ombre indigène’ by artist Edith Dekyndt, adding to the opera's complex and layered experience.

Notable works

• Letters to Anna (2009–2010): A symphony for solo violin that received an honourable mention at the 2012 Gaudeamus competition.
• Canti d'inizio e fine: Composed for a solo performer who can play, sing, and express a range of emotions; it has been performed by cellist Maya Fridman.
• Todos los fuegos el fuego: A musical cycle for saxophone octet that immerses listeners in a mystical experience, linking music and literature.

Artistic approach

Shalygin's music is characterised by its intensity and demand for deep engagement from both performers and listeners. He often focuses on solo instruments to convey intimate and profound expressions, believing that "the most concealed, intimate, and deep things can only be expressed by a single instrument."

Thus Shalygin extends the traditional array of playing techniques, not so much by resorting to 'extended techniques' like Lachenmann in his string quartets, or Sciarrino in his Sei Capricci per violine, who tend to transform the sound of the violin into something totally unexpected. Rather, Shalygin is out at unfolding the sound of the violin in all its congenial sonority. No academic formulas hence, nor avant-garde radicalisms, but rather a self-conceived scale of playing techniques in its own right that, otherwise than Lachenmanns 'manuals', never severs the ties with sonority, and thus allows for maintaining a thoroughly tonal language.

— Stefan Beyst, "Review of ‘Letters to Anna’. Symphony for violin solo (2009–2010) by Maxim Shalygin"

Recent activities

As of 2024, Shalygin continues to reside and work in the Netherlands, actively composing and participating in various musical projects and festivals worldwide.

References

1. ^ "Maxim Shalygin". donemus.nl. Donemus. 14 June 2016. Archived from the original on 7 August 2022. Retrieved 30 December 2024.
2. ^ "Maxim Shalygin : Whispers from nowhere". eye-to-eye.online. European Festivals Association. 9 May 2022. Archived from the original on 17 May 2022. Retrieved 30 December 2024.
3. ^ Tukova, Iryna (2018). "The Development of Western European Trends in the Kyiv Composition School (2010–2017)" (PDF). Lietuvos muzikologija (19): 52–61. Archived (PDF) from the original on 26 March 2023. Retrieved 30 December 2024.
4. ^ Stefan Beyst (September 2012). "Review of 'Letters to Anna'. Symphony for violin solo (2009–2010) by Maxim Shalygin". d-sites.net. Archived from the original on 14 July 2013. Retrieved 30 December 2024.
5. ^ "Maxim Shalygin". trptk.com. TRPTK. 16 July 2023. Archived from the original on 4 October 2023. Retrieved 30 December 2024.
6. "Shalygin: Lacrimosa or 13 Magic Songs". trptk.com. TRPTK. 1 April 2018. Archived from the original on 21 May 2022. Retrieved 1 January 2025.
7. "Maxim Shalygin – Todos los fuegos el fuego". donemus.nl. Donemus. 29 August 2019. Archived from the original on 17 September 2020. Retrieved 1 January 2025.
8. "November Music 2021: Severade (Engelstalig)". vpro.nl (in Dutch). VPRO. 24 February 2022. Archived from the original on 17 May 2022. Retrieved 1 January 2025.
9. "Delirium - Maxim Shalygin". theater.nl (in Dutch). 1 February 2024. Archived from the original on 1 March 2024. Retrieved 1 January 2025.
10. "Openbare repetitie wereldpremière Bleeding". muziekgebouw.nl (in Dutch). Muziekgebouw. 26 March 2024. Archived from the original on 5 September 2024. Retrieved 1 January 2025.
11. Stapel, Joep (4 October 2024). "Shalygin maakt van Plato's Symposium een meesterlijke soort-van-opera over de liefde". nrc.nl (in Dutch). NRC. Archived from the original on 4 October 2024. Retrieved 1 January 2025.
12. Stokkers, Maartje (3 October 2024). "Er gaat te veel verloren, helaas, in de onsamenhangende opera 'Amandante'". volkskrant.nl (in Dutch). de Volkskrant. Archived from the original on 3 October 2024. Retrieved 1 January 2025.
13. Derks, Thea (3 October 2024). "Eerste opera van Shalygin klinkt als een soort Philip Glass in overdrive". theaterkrant.nl (in Dutch). Theaterkrant. Archived from the original on 3 October 2024. Retrieved 1 January 2025.

• Living people
• Ukrainian classical composers
• Ukrainian male composers
• 21st-century composers
• People from The Hague
• Royal Conservatory of The Hague alumni
• Kyiv Conservatory alumni