Ján Števuliak

Ján Števuliak is a composer and organist. He works across various artistic disciplines and media (movement, performance improvisation, material-based art, etc.). He also collaborates with artists from the theater, film, and dance communities. He hails from the village of Čimhová in the Orava region, where he began by playing the piano and singing in a choir. He went on to study the organ, working in local Catholic parishes and participating in concerts and competitions. He currently lives in Finland, though he also creates works in Slovakia and the United Kingdom.

His works have been performed in concert by contemporary music performers and orchestras (Ensemble Modern, BL!NDMAN collective, and the Avanti! Orchestra, among others). The compositions *il cantar senza voglia* (2023) for choir and *speculating on what is to come* (2024) for symphony orchestra were nominated by the Slovak section of the ISCM for international contemporary music festivals. Together with pianist Carolina Cury, he collaborated on the composition *Variations and Theme on Invisible Cities* (2022) for piano, voice, and electronics, for which they received the John Halford Award for composition and piano performance in 2022.

In the musical expressions of his work, "contrasts are a frequent theme, as well as what can be found between their polar opposites; furthermore, the clash of identities that shape personal and artistic interests, or contemplation of the surroundings and environment in which he lives (its human and non-human elements)."

He is a member of the Slovak Composers' Association and the Finnish Composers' Association. Among the foundations supporting his creative work are the Arts Promotion Fund and the Finnish Music Foundation MES.