EMRE SIHAN KALELI

“My tales, like those of the Thousand and One Nights, are intended not to persuade readers, but to entertain and touch them.”

Jorge Luis Borges, Foreword to the Brodie’s Report

I am a Turkish composer based in Vienna. I have studied and acquired professional experience in four countries: Turkey, Uzbekistan, the Netherlands, and Austria. Close artistic collaborations with certain soloists and collectives, namely Matthias Arter (oboe, Switzerland), Aleksandra Bajde (composition & voice, Slovenia), the Omnibus Ensemble (Uzbekistan), the pre-art soloists (Switzerland), the Nieuw Ensemble (the Netherlands), the Ensemble Modelo62 (the Netherlands), and the ensemble XXI. jahrhundert (Austria) played a significant role in my artistic development. I should mention the studies with Richard Ayres, extra-curricular mentorship of Joël Bons along with master-classes with Dmitri Kourliandski as other important influences on me. 

Most of my compositions strongly differ from one another, displaying a plurality of aesthetic directions and accompanying technical tools. Nonetheless, it can be observed that my music strongly tends to be expressive – it is impulsive with frequent and abrupt changes, and rich in the sense of diversity of musical scenes and situations that it presents. 

My works have been awarded with a number of prizes and honors. Here is a selection of them:

• 2022 – ‘Förderungspreis’ of the City of Vienna in the Field of Music
• 2022 – 2nd Prize at the Salvatore Martirano Memorial Composition Award Competition 2022
• 2021 – Austrian State Scholarship for Composition
• 2019 – ISCM World New Music Days 2020 in New Zealand – One of the two selected composers from Austria
• 2019 – impuls Composition Competition, Austria, Winner
• 2019 – International Call for Scores, mdi Ensemble, Italy, Winner
• 2018 – ‘Startstipendium’ for Music and Performing Arts of the Austrian Federal Chancellery, Austria
• 2015 – Gargonza Arts Award (nominated by Heinz Holliger), Germany, A three months artist residency award in Italy
• 2015 – MIAM Composition Award, Turkey
• 2015 – Funding for a two-years artistic project with the Ensemble Modelo62 from the Dutch Performing Arts Funds, the Netherlands
• 2013 – Gaudeamus Award, the Netherlands, Honorable Mention
• 2009 – 5^th Pre-Art Competition for Young Composers, Switzerland, 1^st Prize

I also work as the Assistant Artistic Director at the ensemble XX. jahrhundert.

Here you can find my portrait interview on the Music Austria (MICA) website (in German).

• Project 2023: New work for the Phace Ensemble; New work for Flute Quartett (WDR commission); New work for Between Feathers Ensemble
• Projects 2022: New Work for ensemble XXI. jahrhundert premiered in October 2022 at Wiener Konzerthaus; Hybrid Technologies for ensemble and electronics, commissioned by Riot Ensemble and premiered in September 2022 at the Gaudeamus Music Week; Subterranean – an interdisciplinary performance work created in collaboration with Teresa Doblinger (Choreography), Sara-Lisa Bals (Scenography) and The Black Page Orchestra, and premiered in June 2022 in REAKTOR

*Many thanks to City of Vienna, Federal Ministry Republic of Austria for Arts, Culture, Civil Service and Sport and SKE-Fonds for the financial support of my works in form of grants and scholarships