Serhiy Vilka. Composer, multi-instrumentalist, conductor. Co-founder of Sed Contra Ensemble.
Born in Donetsk in a family of musicians. Graduated from Donetsk Music College as a flutist. Graduated from the Tchaikovsky National Music Academy of Ukraine, flute class of S. Neugodnikov and composition class of E. Stankovych. He also completed an assistantship as a composer with Yevhen Stankovych at the NMAU. He studied composition with E. Kornovych in Warsaw as part of a Gaude Polonia scholarship in 2019.
As a performer, he has given more than 100 world and Ukrainian premieres of works by many foreign and domestic composers. Some of these works were created especially for the musician.
In 2011, as a flutist, he took part in the International Ensemble Modern Academy as part of the Klangspuren Schwaz Tirol festival, where he collaborated with composer George Benjamin and conductor Franck Ollu. In 2019, Sergiy took part in the European Workshop for Contemporary Music under the direction of Rüdiger Bohn as part of the 62nd Warsaw Autumn Festival.
In 2012, he took part in the International Artist Residency Programme as a composer-in-residence (Druskininkai, Lithuania). In autumn, the work "Meditation on the name of JoHn CAGE", created during the residency, was chosen as a compulsory piece for the piano competition at the Tchaikovsky National Music Academy of Ukraine. In 2021, at the request of Kyiv Flute Days, Serhiy wrote the piece "Escape" for five flutes and piano, which was performed at the closing of the festival. Also in 2021, the piece Conditions / Fractions was commissioned by the Lviv Organ Hall.
As a composer, he took part in masterclasses by Johannes Schoellhorn, Jerzy Kornowicz, Chaya Czernowin, Zygmunt Krauze, Toshio Hosokawa, and Juste Janulyte. As a flutist - with Pierre-Yves Artaud and in the jazz workshop of Eden Ladin.
Serhiy Vilka's music is performed in Ukraine, the USA, Germany, Austria, Poland, Lithuania, Moldova, and Armenia.
Since February 2020, Serhiy Vilka has been the Chief Conductor of the Zhytomyr Academic Music and Drama Theatre named after I. Kocherha.
