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.
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, opera, and film. His compositions are noted for expanding traditional playing techniques, maintaining a tonal language, and avoiding avant-garde radicalism.
[4][5]
Shalygin's works have been performed at numerous international venues and festivals, such as Gaudeamus Muziekweek in the Netherlands, and Klarafestival in Belgium. Ensembles like Asko/Schönberg, Amsterdam Sinfonietta, and Slagwerk Den Haag as well as among others soloists like Antonii Baryshevskyi (piano), Anna Fedorova (piano), Maya Fridman (cello), Natalia Gordeyeva (violin), Tomoko Mukaiyama (piano), Emmy Storms (violin), and Diana Tishchenko (violin) have featured his compositions.[1][3]
Music
Works
In 2016, Shalygin 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.[5]
To date, the project includes:
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.[6]
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.[7]
Severade (2021): Nine cellos. This piece creates a rich tapestry of sound that delves into the depths of the cello's expressive capabilities.[8]
Delirium (2023): Four grand pianos. 'Delirium' offers an immersive auditory experience that challenges perceptions of space and time.[9]
Bleeding (2024): Thirteen brass players. Bleeding brings a detail from Bruckner's huge Eighth Symphony into today's language.[10]
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’.[11]de Volkskrant calls the opera a ‘pompous potpourri of over-familiar musical styles’ and finds the scenes disjointed.[12]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.[13]
Other notable works
Letters to Anna (2009–2010): A symphony for solo violin that received an honourable mention at the 2012 Gaudeamus competition.[5]
Canti d'inizio e fine (2019): Composed for a solo performer who can play, sing, and express a range of emotions; it has been performed by cellist Maya Fridman.[14]
KAYA (2019) for Violin and Piano: Commissioned by the Oskar Back Vioolconcours and dedicated to Kaya Shalygin, the composer's daughter. Diana Tishchenko performed this piece with José Gallardo during their ECHO Rising Stars tour.[15]
ANGEL (2020) for Violin and Chello: premiered by Maya Fridman and Merel Vercammen.[16]
Maxim Shalygin: Six Bagatelles & Suite-Homage to Alfred Schnittke
Ihor Zavhorodnii, Andrii Pavlov, Irina Kozlova, Sergey Kozakov, Igor Patsovsky
Reception and popularity
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."[2]
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"[4]
The music on this disc is a fascinating exploration of instrumental textures, with Shalygin creating structures and then disturbing them in intriguing ways. It is a striking sound world, and makes you keen to hear some of his more recent music.
— Robert Hugill, "Review on Maxim Shalygin's CD: Six Bagatelles & Suite-Homage to Alfred Schnittke"[23]
His music has powerful emotions and colours. Sometimes I feel that while playing it, a door suddenly swings open to another dimension. Music is at its best when listeners can get lost in it, that afterwards you don't know exactly what happened to you, how long it took.
As of 2024, Shalygin continues to reside and work in the Netherlands, actively composing and participating in various musical projects and festivals worldwide.
References
^ ab"Maxim Shalygin". donemus.nl. Donemus. 14 June 2016. Archived from the original on 7 August 2022. Retrieved 30 December 2024.
